James Milner scored a second-half winner as Aston Villa edged past Wigan Athletic 2-1 at the DW Stadium.
Latics midfielder James McCarthy sidefooted John Carew’s clever cross into his own net to give Villa the lead, but under-fire Gary Caldwell equalised within minutes when he headed home Charles N’Zogbia’s free kick.
Both sides had chances to win in a match that was end-to-end, but it was Milner who struck on 63 minutes to keep Villa’s Champions League hopes alive.