Draw Leaves Both Wigan and Tottenham Wanting For More
Andre Villas-Boas (Wikimedia Commons)
Most clubs would take a 2-2 draw on any given Saturday but this was a different type of Saturday at the DW Stadium in Wigan.
With the home side in a relegation battle and their visitors Tottenham in a top-four fight, a draw for both sides did no good for either club.
The Latics, who are now two points behind Aston Villa for the final survival spot in the EPL showed plenty of resolve after falling behind in the ninth minute by scoring an equalizer two minutes later by way of Emmerson Boyce.
Later in the match, Boyce would find the back of the net again but it was his own net in the 89th minute. With the own goal, Wigan gave up their hard-earned lead and potentially their spot in the EPL next season.
Roberto Martinez’s club have been one of the biggest relegation stories for the last few years but it seems like their relegation story will come down to the final day of the season when they host Aston Villa at the DW Stadium.
As for Tottenham, their hopes of reaching the UEFA Champions League are still strong but they will need help from Swansea and Manchester United on Sunday as they respectively take on Chelsea and Arsenal.
If Chelsea and Arsenal both lose, Spurs will just be one point out of third place. If both clubs win, the uphill climb to fourth becomes much more difficult for Andre Villas-Boas and company.
All signs are pointing toward a crucial mid-week clash with Chelsea on May 8 that could determine not only the fate of the club next season but the fate of superstar Gareth Bale as well.
While staying up in the world’s most expensive league is a great accomplishment for Wigan to achieve, Tottenham are the much better club and they should have won on the road on Saturday but instead they now have a heavyweight fight in front of them as they look to fly high in Europe with their superstar next season.
