Wigan 1-1 Arsenal (2-4) FA Cup Semi Final - Five Talking Points

2. Wigan, Substitutions & Penalties

One of the biggest mistake that Wigan could and did make was going into the extra time and penalty shoot out with an inhibitory mindset. Having played the game on merit till the point they scored the first goal,the Latics later on went into a preventive mode, trying to defend, taking off their best attacking outlet in the form of Callum McManaman and getting hemmed in and looking to absorb what Arsenal had to offer to them. This mentality kind of ruined the game for them, particularly, when they went into the penalty shoot out (yes, that lottery the commentators keep telling you about). While Arsenal presented their best kick takers from the beginning, Wigan went with the worst to best kick takers which kind of back fired when the first two penalties were saved by Fabianski. Jordi Gomez, who had calmly slotted his penalty in the normal time was not even subjected to take a penalty because of this strategy. Uwe Rosler has done a tremendous job with this Wigan team and would be hoping to clinch a promotion via play offs. Wigan’s journey in the FA Cup typified their character and showed that if and when they turn up,they can beat any side.But few little details and tactics can hamper even the most motivated of the teams and that was pretty much what transpired this time round with Wigan.