Wigan hold Arsenal to a shocking draw
Arsenal succumbed to their third draw of the season so far as they failed to overcome a ten-man Wigan side.
The Gunners were held to a 2-2 draw, ensuring that they remained in third place. Arsene Wenger will be wondering where it all went wrong as he saw his side squander their chance to climb to the summit of the Barclays Premier League table.
Many have questioned Arsenal manager’s decisions for the match. Wenger played almost a completely different team from the one that defeated http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Laurent-Koscielny-c21742 were the only two players from that match. However, Arsenal
manager claims he had no choice but to rest his squad after their crunch encounter against the English champions.
The move seemed to have backfired. Wigan dominated the early stages of the game. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Charles-c8808 N'Zogbia had chances to open the scoring but were denied by some great defending from Koscielny. After the early scare, Arsenal slowly found their
way back into the contest. Rosicky sent Arshavin clean through on goal with a perfectly timed ball. However, the Russian international could not direct his shot on target. Bendtner then saw his free-kick deflected just wide off the post, much to the relief
of the crowd at the DW stadium.
Wigan drew first blood in the 17th minute. N'Zogbia made a darting run down the right flank which was brought to an abrupt end when Koscielny tumbled him over at the edge of the box. The referee had no choice but to award the penalty. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ben-Watson-c7458
made no mistake from the spot, smashing the ball past a helpless Fabianski to give Wigan the lead.
Arsene Wenger was forced to bring in Jack Wilshire for the injured http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Abou-Diaby-c3453 at the half-hour mark. His arrival spurred Arsenal back into action. The visitors drew level five minutes before the break. Al Habsi managed to keep Bendtner’s shot out, but could
only push the ball to the waiting http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Andrei-Arshavin-c5771. The Russian unleashed a spectacular scissor kick, giving the Wigan keeper no chance as the ball flew into the back of the net.
Boosted by the goal, Arsenal surged forward. The Gunners scored their second just minutes later. Bendtner weaved past a couple of weak challenges and burst into the box, making no mistake from 12 yards out. Wenger’s side went into half time with a vital
one-goal lead.
The second half was a more open affair, with both sides getting good chances to score. The Gunners had a couple of fantastic opportunities to kill the game off, but they simply could not find a way past the Wigan keeper.
Fifteen minutes before time, N'Zogbia earned a straight red card for head-butting Wilshire. The midfielder had been the best player for Wigan and his dismissal would have been a big blow for them. However, the home side battled on, finally getting their
reward in the 81st minute.
Rodallega aimed his header at the far post, giving Caldwell a chance to score the equaliser. Squillaci tried to deny the Wigan captain, but could only head the ball into his own net. Arsene Wenger saw the points slipping away and threw all his cards on the
table. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Samir-Nasri-c32360 were sent into the fray, however, Wigan held on to a deserved point.
The result sees the Lactics move out of the relegation zone to the relatively safe 16th position. Meanwhile, Arsene Wenger has some thinking to do as he prepares his team for their visit to Birmingham City on 1 January.
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