WIGAN manager Steve Bruce had described January as one of the most important months in the club’s history and it is fair to say that his dealings during the transfer window are likely to have a major bearing on which direction the club takes.

Yesterday offered few clues, however, as the “new generation”, as Bruce dubbed them, struggled to find their game and could easily have become Fulham’s first victims away from home in the league since the final day of last season.

Record signing Charles N’Zogbia made little impact following his acrimonious arrival from Newcastle, while Hugo Rodallega faded after a bright star in attack as he and Mido try to fill the void left by Emile Heskey’s departure.

One top-class player Bruce was able to hold on to is winger Antonio Valencia but his comeback from injury lasted just 18 minutes and in fairness to Bruce, many of his plans were disrupted by the end of a first half in which he had been forced to use all of his substitutes.

Michael Brown went off early to be replaced by a further new signing in Ben Watson, and Mido limped off after missing one of the best chances of the match when he made a mess of Maynor Figueroa’s left-wing cross. The striker earlier saw a low shot saved by former Middlesbrough teammate Mark Schwarzer and Rodallega headed over when Brede Hangeland inadvertently flicked a long throw-in onto his forehead at the far post.

Jason Koumas and Watson also steered shots wide as Wigan laboured, but it was Fulham that carried the greater attacking threat, particularly in the first half when Roy Hodgson’s Fulham side looked anything but a team that doesn’t know how to win away from Craven Cottage.

“You are happy when you don’t lose away from home but come Monday when we are talking about it among ourselves we will be saying it was a golden opportunity to break our away win duck,” Hodgson said afterwards.

One statistic that continues to haunt Fulham is their goal ratio. Three goals away from home all season and one in their previous seven trips suggests a phobia in the penalty area and so it proved again.

Bobby Zamora did everything right until he saw the whites of the goal posts. Once he was denied by Chris Kirkland’s fine save but on another occasion he headed over from three yards and at other times looked to pass when a confident player would have shot.

Andy Johnson was at least prepared to have a go but he has hardly been prolific either and he also failed to make the most of two decent first-half openings before the pair again stretched Wigan after the break without being able to land the killer blow.

Star man: Danny Murphy (Fulham)

Yellow cards: Wigan: Figueroa Fulham: Pentsil

Referee: L Probert

Attendance: 16,499

WIGAN: Kirkland 7, Melchiot 7, Scharner 6, Bramble 6, Figueroa 7, Valencia 5 (Watson 18min, 6), Brown 5 (Koumas 18min, 5), Cattermole 6, N’Zogbia 5, Mido 5 (Zaki 42min, 6), Rodallega 6

FULHAM: Schwarzer, Pantsil 7, Hughes 7, Hangeland 7, Konchesky 7, Davies 6, Etuhu 6 (Dacourt 45min, 6), Murphy 8, Dempsey 6 (Gera 90min), Zamora 7 (Nevland 75min), Johnson 7