At the end of 90 minutes, the Latics ran out 2-1 winners in
a match that many football pundits gave to Arsenal. The gunners squandered a
golden opportunity that would have made them go EIGHT (8) points clear on the
table.
However, kudos must be given to Wigan and especially their
coach, Roberto Martinez, who over-turned their fortune in the EPL, lifting
them five points clear off relegation. The top of the ice remains the difficult
games he had to play in achieving this feat. In the space of a month, they faced
the daunting challenge of meeting the once revered ‘top four teams’- Man U,
Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool.
In these matches they were able to pick up 12 point in a
possible 16; by beating Arsenal, Liverpool and defending champions, Man U. The
defeat they suffered at Chelsea was even a controversial one, which drew
apologies from the Chairman of Referees Association, Mike Riley.
In my honest view, Martinez should be a deserved and worthy Coach of the month winner. He has managed the team in a marvelous way, not minding
the meager resource at his disposal; coupled with the constant loss of his
talents.
Undermining the above analysis, Arsenal had no cogent reason
to have lost that match at Emirate which is fast becoming their fortress. Yes,
they played their domineering game, but that urgency was lacking…exactly what
they missed when they played against QPR. Teams that are good with counter
attacks will keep punishing the Arsenal team, until they learn to balance they attacking/defending
prowess.
Arsene was busy accusing the referees for not penalizing the
Wigan players for time wasting; but in my opinion he would have directed that
energy to spurring his players, jolt them out of their comfort zone and play
for results.
The third position is still very vacant, as Arsenal’s next
opposition is a rejuvenated Chelsea side who are also fighting for a top four
finish.
The question is: with these inconsistencies, when are we
going to see the first trophy at Emirates?
Drop your views…
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