Wigan Athletic 1 West Ham 0

Gianfranco Zola handed a league debut to Zavon Hines and although the young forward caused problems for the home defence with his pace the shot shy Hammers attack never really looked like breaching Chris Kirkland's goal.

Hines looked to have a decent shout for a penalty when he was blocked by Figueroa, although the contact was subsequently shown to be outside the box but referee Alan Wiley waved away the West Ham appeals.

Carlton Cole had a goal ruled out right at the end of the first half after the referee blew for the break just as the England striker was about to knock the ball into an empty net.

Rodallega secured the points for Wigan, stabbing the ball home from close range after Robert Green had done well to block a Jason Koumas shot.

Positives for West Ham were the return of Valon Behrami to first team action after six months out with knee ligament damage, while Alessandro Diamanti looked lively when he made his debut as a 63rd minute substitute.

The Italian hit the far post with a deliberate cross shot, although salvaging a point would have been flattering to West Ham.

Zola was phlegmatic about the defeat, although he will expect a more potent performance against Liverpool this Saturday.

He said: "The goal was sloppy. We didn't start the second hald in the same frame of mind we did the first. That's something we need to work on."

He was more positive about the performance of new boy Diamanti.

He said: "Alessandro Diamanti is a player who has got a lot of quality. Now he need to get used to the pace of the Premier League. I'm sure he will have a big impact."

Wigan: Kirkland, Boyce, Bramble, Melchiot, Figueroa, Thomas, Koumas (Scharner, 65), N'Zogbia, Gomez (Sinclair, 90), Diame, Rodallega (Scotland, 72). Unused subs: Pollitt, Edman, Cho, King.

Booked: Bramble, Figueroa.

Goal: Rodallega 55

West Ham: Green, Faubert, Gabbidon, Upson, Tomkins, Parker, Noble (Nouble, 86), Kovac (Behrami, 63), Stanislas (Diamanti, 63), Cole, Hines. Unused subs: Kurucz, Spector, Da Costa, Payne.

Booked: Noble

Attendance: 17,142

Referee: Alan Wiley