Roberto Martinez couldn't hide his delight after Wigan's shock 1-0 win over Liverpool which moved them four points clear of the drop.
Hugo Rodallega's eighth Premier League goal of the season in the 35th minute settled the contest after Dirk Kuyt gave the ball away on the edge of his own penalty area.
Martinez said: "The things you needed to beat a top-four club were there. Character, responsibility, desire, the 'over my dead body' mentality. "
It was very pleasing but on top of that we scored a very good goal from open play against a very tough side and we limited Liverpool to very little.
That is probably the biggest compliment of the night.
They have a real threat with Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Kuyt, Yossi Benayoun and to keep them quiet we made the fans proud.
"This is one of the days to be very, very proud of Wigan. You saw a group of players who want to play the right way, want to win in the right manner. They have all the attributes needed in a very good football side. "
We need to carry on this standard till the end of the season."