Sanchez only given a passing mention

There seemed to be no great sense of loss for departed manager Lawrie Sanchez as home supporters sang their Al Fayed song but the chairman was not in the mood to bask in the seventh managerial exit in 10 years since he arrived at Craven Cottage.

The Egyptian has a lot on his mind at the moment, with the recently adjourned inquest into the death of his son Dodi and Princess Diana and the Christmas rush at Harrods, not to mention the very uncertain future of his football club.

Ray Lewington, now in his third spell as the club's caretaker manager, is expected to remain in charge at least for the Boxing Day trip to Tottenham as Al Fayed contemplates his next manager.

Lewington wants the job but the club will probably look further afield, like Barwick, who has annoyed English bosses like Wigan's Steve Bruce by choosing an Italian to manage England. Scot John Collins, who resigned from Hibernian on Thursday, remains the most likely option, despite trying to distance himself from Fulham.

The eight-month reign of Sanchez ended on Friday morning and all trace of the former Northern Ireland boss was quietly and effectively airbrushed from the Cottage within 24 hours.

His programme notes, normally prepared well in advance, were gone and everyone behaved as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred; as though sacking your manager at Christmas was the most normal thing in the world. As if to prove it was business as usual, Fulham drew for the eighth time this season.

Marcus Bent struck first for Wigan but Clint Dempsey rescued a point and dragged Fulham out of the relegation zone on goal difference at the expense of Sunderland.

Dempsey said: "We didn't have much time with the new manager to prepare. But he just said take risks, pass the ball and don't be afraid. We had a bit more freedom. We were able to play a bit more and pass it through the middle.

"We didn't play so direct. It was like a weight lifted off our shoulders.

"We were able to express ourselves a bit more and the guys enjoyed that. We weren't able to get the win but I think we were the better side."

Despite keeping the club in the Barclays Premier League at the end of last season, Sanchez has failed to command a place in the hearts of supporters, while players soon became disillusioned with his direct style of football.

Lewington, who made few changes to personnel despite the tactical switch, said: 'I tried to put my stamp on it. I said let's have one pass in between the ones we usually have.

"Instead of knocking it forward with one pass, let's see if we can maybe play it into midfield and knock it on after that. It was only a slight adjustment but they tried to do it well. We played some good football in patches."

Those players who resisted the Sanchez way last season were hastily sold in the summer, including Michael Brown, who returned on Saturday in Wigan's midfield.

Brown said: "It's changed a lot and it's hard to do that at a football club. There was a good bunch and a good core and they were great to be in among but maybe Lawrie Sanchez wanted to change and bring his own people in. I think he signed 12 players. Managers have a right to do that."

Dempsey admitted managerial changes had become like 'substitutions' but added: "We weren't getting the best results and if that happens there has to be some sort of change. If you get relegated that is a lot of money to lose and sometimes clubs are not able to bounce back."

It was left to Wigan boss Bruce to offer sympathy for the seventh managerial casualty of the Premier League season.

Bruce said: "I don't know Lawrie really but there are only 92 of us. We know it's dog eat dog but you feel for people when they lose their jobs because I've been there and it's not very nice."

Bruce has been delighted with the response of the Wigan players since he arrived. He added: "When you take over a club and they haven't won in 13 games, you've got to try to restore the pride and a bit of belief. There were a lot of pleasing things in this game and it was important not to get beaten."

FULHAM (4-4-2): Niemi 6; Omozusi 6 (Baird 60min, 6), Hughes 7, Bocanegra 7, Konchesky 6; Davies 7, Murphy 7, Davis 7 (Healy 59, 6), Bouazza 6 (Kuqi 72, 6); Kamara 5, Dempsey 7.

WIGAN (4-4-2): Kirkland 6; Boyce 6, Scharner 6, Bramble 7, Kilbane 7; Valencia 7, Landzaat 6, Brown 6, Taylor 6 (Olembe 86); Bent 7, Aghahowa 5 (Sibierski 63, 7). Man of the match: Clint Dempsey. Referee: Alan Wiley.