Wigan Athletic Players Profile

Name:	Chris Kirkland
Nationality:	English
Date of Birth:	02/05/1981
Height:	6' 3" (191cm)
Weight:	11st 9lbs (74.0kg)
Previous
Clubs:	Liverpool, Coventry City, Leicester City, WBA (loan)
Position:	Goalkeeper

Chris Kirkland signed for Latics in July 2006 initially on a six month loan deal, which became permanent in January 2007.
The Leicester born shot stopper started his career with Coventry City, and he made his debut in the League Cup against Tranmere in September 1999. He broke into the first team the following season as the Blues failed to win their battle against relegation from the Premiership, but Kirkland emerged as one of the country's most exciting goalkeeping prospects.
Former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier took Kirkland to Anfield in August 2001 for £6million. The former England U21 'keeper was given a chance to show what he was capable of in the 2002/03 season when Polish team mate Jerzy Dudek suffered from an ankle injury. But Kirkland then found himself sidelined due to a broken wrist and was out of action for the rest of that season.
The 26-year old has had his chances limited at Anfield in recent seasons due to the form of Dudek, and more recently, Jose Reina, and he spent the whole of the 2005/06 season on loan at West Bromwich Albion where he made 12 appearances.

Kirkland's performances throughout the 2009/10 season were a huge factor in Wigan Athletic's success, showing the kind of commitment and professionalism we have all become accustomed to as at the club.

Those values, together with his contributions on the pitch, were awarded with the club's 2010 Media Player of the Year Award.

In September 2009 Chris reached the 100-league-game landmark away at Arsenal, an indication of the influential effect he has had at the club since his arrival in 2006 from Liverpool.

Chris' attitude and commitment to the club both on and off have earned him huge respect from his fellow professionals.

Name:	Steve Gohouri
Nationality:	Ivorian
Date of Birth:	08/02/1981
Height:	6' 2" (187cm)
Weight:	13st 12lbs (88.0kg)
Previous
Clubs:	Young Boys, FC Vaduz, Borussia M.gla
Position:	Defender

Steve Gohouri joined Wigan Athletic in January 2010 from German club Borussia Monchengladbach initially on a loan-deal until the end of the 2009/10 season.  The club quickly moved to make the deal permanent at the end of the loan spel/

After a string of superb performances at centre-half and full-back, Gohouri's athleticism and committment earned him a full-time contract at the Club, helped along with his first goal for Latics - a last-gasp bicycle-kick against Hull City in the final home game of the 09/10 campaign.

The experienced 28-year-old defender played almost 50 games for the Bundesliga side having previously experienced spells with Young Boys, FC Vaduz, Bologna, Yverdon-Sport FC, Bnei Yehuda and Paris Saint-Germain prior to his move to the DW Stadium.

An Ivory Coast international, Gohouri has two caps to his name so far featuring against Mauritius and Madagascar, scoring three goals across both games. An impressive end to the 2009/10 season ensured his place in Sven Goran Eriksson's World Cup squad, but was unfortunate not to feature during the tournament.

Name:	Antolin Alcaraz
Nationality:	Paraguayan
Date of Birth:	30/07/1982
Height:	6' 2" (187cm)
Weight:	12st 13lbs (82.0kg)
Previous
Clubs:	Club Brugge
Position:	Defender

Antolin Alcaraz joined Latics after an impressive World Cup 2010 campaign with Paraguay, during which he scored his first international goal against the Italians in the group stages.

The 28-year-old first shot to prominence in Portugal during a four-year spell at Beira-Mar where, after seven games in half a season, he became regular in the first division side's defence and also because the club's captain.

He repeated his success at Belgian Club Brugges, joining them in April 2007, going on to help them to two third places and a second place finish.