Patrik Berger was among an indeterminate number of players taking a curtain call at Villa Park on Saturday as Martin O’Neill’s team lost ground in their bid to win direct entry into the Uefa Cup and the sense of disappointment deepened after the lap of honour when the former Liverpool winger urged Gareth Barry to take “the chance of a lifetime” and move to Anfield.

Liverpool’s public courtship of the England midfield player has exacerbated Aston Villa’s craving for European football but Berger, who won the Uefa Cup during seven years of regular continental involvement at Anfield, believes that Barry should not hesitate to seize the chance of Champions League action next season.

O’Neill has publicly ridiculed Liverpool’s initial bid for his captain – a £10 million “mishmash” of cash and cast-offs – but that faxed offer had the air of a loosener in the first over of a Test series. Liverpool will call again.

“If I was in Gareth’s position I would go tomorrow,” Berger, who is out of contract next month, said. “It is the opportunity of a lifetime. He is the heart of our team and it would be a massive challenge for him.”

As Wigan Athletic guaranteed their survival, Villa’s sixth home defeat of the season underlined an inconsistency that has been caused by a lack of quality in depth. O’Neill acknowledges this and is preparing for a summer assault on the transfer market. However, as Berger leaves, and Barry thinks about it, they could share a taxi with Scott Carson, the goalkeeper on loan from Liverpool, who did not appear for the postmatch walkabout.

Olof Mellberg was given a superb send-off, as he prepares to move to Juventus, but he gave warning that Villa cannot just buy their way into the top four. “The team’s future looks bright,” the Sweden defender said. “Villa have a young squad and talented key players, but we are not the only team with ambitions.”

Mellberg was one of Villa’s better players on a day when Barry, Ashley Young and Co could not maintain their recent electrifying form. Wigan, playing with the freedom of a team who may be pushing for Europe themselves on the basis of their postChristmas form, took the lead when Luis Antonio Valencia crashed a shot in off Wilfred Bouma. The Ecuador winger added a second as he ran on to Emile Heskey’s flick-on and, from the inside-left channel, arrowed a right-foot shot inside Carson’s near post.

Steve Bruce has performed wonders in lifting Wigan out of the relegation zone and Heskey believes that his former manager at Birmingham City can continue to work the magic next season, even if “big-four” clubs succeed in luring away Valencia and Wilson Palacios.

Aston Villa (4-3-1-2): S Carson 4 – O Mellberg 7, Z Knight 5 (sub: P Berger, 61min 6), M Laursen 7, W Bouma 5 (sub: M Harewood, 69 5) – N Reo-Coker 4, S Petrov 6, G Barry 5 – A Young 6 – G Agbonlahor 5, J Carew 4. Substitutes not used: S Taylor, M Salifou, W Routledge. Next: West Ham (a).

Wigan Athletic (4-4-2): C Kirkland 7 – E Boyce 6, T Bramble 8, P Scharner 9, K Kilbane 6 – L A Valencia 7, M Brown 6, W Palacios 6 (sub: J Skoko, 89), J Koumas 6 – M Bent 5 (sub: M King, 77), E Heskey 6 (sub: A Sibierski, 89). Substitutes not used: M Pollitt, R Taylor. Booked: Brown. Next: Manchester United (h).

Referee: R Styles
Attendance: 42,640