but there's the obvious question mark over fitness. It's not just been one thing with him because he's been unlucky with broken ribs, fingers, knee injuries, back." This move became permanent for a sum of £2.5 million on 27 October when the two clubs and Kirkland made a compromise. He won the club's Players' Player of the Year and Media Player of the Year awards for the 2007–08 season. A highlight of this season was saving a Benni McCarthy penalty in a 5–3 win over Blackburn Rovers at the DW Stadium. He committed his future to Wigan in May 2008 when he signed a new contract, tying him to the club until 2012. On 22 November 2009, Kirkland conceded nine goals in a Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur. Sunderland manager Steve Bruce – Kirkland's former manager at Wigan from November 2007 to June 2009 – was linked with a move for Kirkland in January 2010, but said that "talk of me bidding £5m for Chris Kirkland is garbage, but he is a very good goalkeeper, and I'm a big, big admirer of him". Speaking in March 2010, manager Roberto Martínez said that "if you look at the standard of his performances – week in, week out – it is up there with the best in England". At the start of the 2010–11 season, Wigan were heavily defeated in their first two matches against Blackpool and Chelsea, and he was replaced in the starting line-up by Ali Al-Habsi. On 25 November 2010, Kirkland joined Championship club Leicester City on loan until January. A back spasm suffered during training in early December nearly ended his stint at the club, but he resumed his loan after making a speedy recovery. He made his debut in a 3–0 defeat to Ipswich Town on 19 December. Kirkland returned to Wigan for treatment on his back injury, after making three appearances at The Walkers Stadium. He was stretchered off after a collision with Johan Elmander in a 1–1 draw against Bolton Wanderers on 5 January 2011; Kirkland was in the Wigan squad due to Ali Al-Habsi's ineligibility to play against his parent club. Kirkland was going to join Cardiff City on emergency loan, in February 2011, as cover for goalkeeper Tom Heaton but the deal fell through after he picked up a virus. On 12 October 2011, Kirkland joined Championship Doncaster Rovers on loan until