As Wigan romped to a 3-0 win against Everton at Goodison Park yesterday in the FA Cup quarterfinal, one player wasn't on the pitch to share in the triumph. Arsenal's Ryo Miyaichi, who is on loan with the Latics, came on for an injured Callum McManaman, but 30 minutes later, the young Japanese player had to leave on a stretcher having sustained another injury from a tough Kevin Mirallas challenge.

It has been a tough year for Miyaichi, a player who looked good against the generous defenses of the Eredivisie two years ago and solid for Bolton Wanderers last year. He has managed to play seven games this year for Wigan, but most of his time has been spent fighting injuries. Now 20 years old, one has to wonder how much the missed time is affecting his development. For a while there, Ryo was looking like a player that I was probably going to fall in love with, and there's every chance he still could be, but dang if this isn't frustrating.