Wigan 1 - 1 Everton, DW Stadium
A late penalty from former Latic's left back Leighton Baines left Hugo Rodallega, and in particular Wigan ruing the 2 points lost from a game in which they dominated from start to finish.
A much needed 3 points seemed to have been thrown away by Wigan conceding two penalties. The first was saved brilliantly by Ali Al Habsi from Mikel Arteta, but he was unable to stop Baines from scoring from the spot at Everton's second time of asking.
Apart from the early moments, Wigan were very much in control of this match. They seemed to want the win more than Everton, and their adventurous nature was rewarded in the 21st minute when Charles N'Zogbia put them ahead, and deservedly so. Scotsman James McCarthy executed a delicate chip over Everton's backline, picking out N'Zogbia, who's initial control was poor. He was unable to recover the ball though, and even though he stumbled after Howard's challenge, he stroked the ball in from a tight angle.
However, Wigan's anxiety started to quickly show when they started to sit back more and more. Leon Osman nearly put Everton straight back into the game, but his fierce shot was palmed over for a corner by Al Habsi. Everton's best chance to equalise in the first half though was in the 35th minute, when Baines caught out Wigan's defence with a short free kick to Osman, who was tripped by the goalscorer N'Zogbia. A penalty from Arteta was saved by Al Habsi though, and in quite spectacular fashion as well.
There was a blow for Wigan just before the break when Mohammed Diame was forced off injured but on the stroke of half time, N'Zogbia nearly added his second, but his powerful drive was pushed to the side by Howard.
In the early stages of the second half, Everton seemed to have the better of the possession, and their chances of a result strengthened when ever threatening N'Zogbia limped off with a hamstring problem, being replaced by Victor Moses. However, Moses seemed to be a man possessed, and immediately took on the role of N'Zogbia, forcing 2 good saves out of Tim Howard within minutes of coming on.
He wreaked a lot of effort, and after a double subsitution from Everton, which saw Seamus Coleman and Jermaine Beckford come on for Arteta and Tim Cahill respectively, he created another chance single handedly, beating both Leighton Baines and Jack Rodwell before his shot was blocked. The loose ball was caught by McCarthy, but his shots were also blocked by defenders.
However, Hugo Rodallega cost his team 2 valuable points with a pointless handball from an Everton corner, with Lee Mason pointing straight to the spot. Leighton Baines smashed it into the roof of the net and drew Everton level.
In a bid to reclaim their lead, Wigan upped their tempo but they were kept at bay by man of the match Tim Howard. Rodallega had two chances to try and recover from his mistake, but his chances were saved, as was a Ben Watson shot, and Franco di Santo shot, which Howard had to make an acrobatic save to stop him from scoring.
A thoroughly entertaining match in Wigan, but I'm sure Martinez would've preferred a boring 1-0 win for Wigan. Points are more important than the performance at this stage of the season, and the major talking point from this match will be whether Wigan will be able to get more points from their last 3 matches to ensure their Premier League status for another season.
A late penalty from former Latic's left back Leighton Baines left Hugo Rodallega, and in particular Wigan ruing the 2 points lost from a game in which they dominated from start to finish.
A much needed 3 points seemed to have been thrown away by Wigan conceding two penalties. The first was saved brilliantly by Ali Al Habsi from Mikel Arteta, but he was unable to stop Baines from scoring from the spot at Everton's second time of asking.
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| Charles N'Zogbia celebrates scoring Wigan's first goal |
However, Wigan's anxiety started to quickly show when they started to sit back more and more. Leon Osman nearly put Everton straight back into the game, but his fierce shot was palmed over for a corner by Al Habsi. Everton's best chance to equalise in the first half though was in the 35th minute, when Baines caught out Wigan's defence with a short free kick to Osman, who was tripped by the goalscorer N'Zogbia. A penalty from Arteta was saved by Al Habsi though, and in quite spectacular fashion as well.
There was a blow for Wigan just before the break when Mohammed Diame was forced off injured but on the stroke of half time, N'Zogbia nearly added his second, but his powerful drive was pushed to the side by Howard.
In the early stages of the second half, Everton seemed to have the better of the possession, and their chances of a result strengthened when ever threatening N'Zogbia limped off with a hamstring problem, being replaced by Victor Moses. However, Moses seemed to be a man possessed, and immediately took on the role of N'Zogbia, forcing 2 good saves out of Tim Howard within minutes of coming on.
He wreaked a lot of effort, and after a double subsitution from Everton, which saw Seamus Coleman and Jermaine Beckford come on for Arteta and Tim Cahill respectively, he created another chance single handedly, beating both Leighton Baines and Jack Rodwell before his shot was blocked. The loose ball was caught by McCarthy, but his shots were also blocked by defenders.
However, Hugo Rodallega cost his team 2 valuable points with a pointless handball from an Everton corner, with Lee Mason pointing straight to the spot. Leighton Baines smashed it into the roof of the net and drew Everton level.
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| Leighton Baines smashes home Everton's 2nd penalty. |
In a bid to reclaim their lead, Wigan upped their tempo but they were kept at bay by man of the match Tim Howard. Rodallega had two chances to try and recover from his mistake, but his chances were saved, as was a Ben Watson shot, and Franco di Santo shot, which Howard had to make an acrobatic save to stop him from scoring.
A thoroughly entertaining match in Wigan, but I'm sure Martinez would've preferred a boring 1-0 win for Wigan. Points are more important than the performance at this stage of the season, and the major talking point from this match will be whether Wigan will be able to get more points from their last 3 matches to ensure their Premier League status for another season.
Will Wigan Athletic stay up?
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