64 touches; 12 duels won: Wednesday’s Fernando Forestieri back to his best in Wigan win

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Sheffield Wednesday defeated Wigan Athletic 2-1 at Hillsborough this weekend.

Sheffield Wednesday star Fernando Forestieri was back to his best at Hillsborough on Saturday afternoon as he played a key role in his side’s victory over Wigan Athletic.

The Latics took the lead through Northern Irish star Will Grigg after five minutes before the Owls came back into it, equalising through free agent signing Steven Fletcher midway through the first period.

In what was a dominating second half for the hosts, Forestieri ultimately grabbed the winner just after the hour mark as he responded quickly to having his own cross blocked to fire past Adam Bogdan.

The Argentine playmaker’s future at Wednesday was in queston during the summer, and he made quite a stir by refusing to travel with the team for the 0-0 draw at Norwich City last month.

But Forestieri appeared to have his mind fully on the task in hand against Wigan, and as shown by the table provided by Opta above he was at times back to his scintillating best.

The former Watford man posted one key pass, four efforts on goal and four successful take-ons.

Going forward there can be no questioning the player’s talents, yet it was again his willingness to work for the team which stood out as he made won an impressive 12 defensive duels and completed five recoveries.

Carlos Carvalhal’s side will have their sights set on another top-six finish in the Championship this season, and having a focused Forestieri gives them the best chance possible.

After a somewhat slow start the season, picking up all three points against Wigan was a big boost for the Owls and now they will be looking for a similar outcome against Bristol City in midweek.