Wigan's Euro bid in the Balance
Posted by liam_wafc in UEFA Cup, Wigan | 9 April 2006
Failure to kill off a team at home yet again almost completely wrote off our hopes of qualifying for Europe. But thanks to Liverpool beating Bolton Wanderers over the weekend means we are now joint seventh on 48 points with our Lancashire rivals. Bolton have the upper hand however, as their better goal difference and game in hand could turn out to be the difference maker.
Of course this is only if Chelsea or Liverpool win the F.A. Cup. If any of West Ham, Charlton or Middlesborough go on and win the cup then UEFA Cup qualification would go up to sixth, which would certainly kill off our hopes!
Finishing, or lack of, in the final third against Birmingham cost us two points. Andreas Johansson should be congratulated for scoring, but he had the best chance to kill the game off after he was one on one with Maik Taylor, only to miss from a few yards out.
It's abit much to ask only the strikers to score, our central midfielders, especially Jimmy Bullard and Graham Kavanagh, must chip in with more goals. Lee McCulloch has scored a creditable five Premiership goals whereas Kavanagh has yet to even score a single goal in his Wigan career.
One thing is for sure, irrelevant of what happens this season, and what a season we have had, our home form needs to improve next season. I've said many times our away form has kept us in the UEFA Cup race, but our achilles heel has been our inability to kill teams off at home, especially after dominating the game.
And our rather paltry 38 goals this season is proof enough that Jewell has to add a striker and midfielder who can both score goals during the Summer transfer Window.
Roll on Newcastle!
Comments
Are you real mate????? you sound like your complaining and if our home form was as good as our away we'd be going for a top 3 finish nevermind a top 7
just no pleasin some people
