Historic FA Cup win for Wigan
Substitute Ben Watson scored an injury-time winner to give Wigan Athletic a sensational 1-0 win over Manchester City at the Wembley Stadium on Saturday in the biggest FA Cup final upset in 25 years.
With extra time beckoning, Watson met a Shaun Maloney corner with a near-post header to stun 2011 cup winners City and give Wigan the first major trophy in their 81-year history. Victory represented a fairytale moment for the modest northwest club and their chairman, Dave Whelan, who punched the air with delight at the final whistle, after a shock that stands comparison with Wimbledon’s 1988 success over Liverpool.
He had earlier led the team onto the pitch, having broken his leg while playing for Blackburn Rovers in the 1960 FA Cup final in an incident that ended his top-level football career.
Beneath driving rain, Wigan manager Roberto Martinez celebrated with his players on the pitch, as the Latics temporarily forgot their perilous fate in the Premier League, where they are on the brink of relegation. “You could see the goal coming — the performance was magnificent. We deserved it,” said Martinez.
“You dream of playing at Wembley and winning. The underdogs played with incredible bravery and belief and fought the odds again. That’s the FA Cup.”
Watson said: “Unbelievable. The boys were fantastic and they deserve it. To come on and score the winner in the FA Cup final is a dream.”
League champions last year, City will finish the season without a trophy after being burnt off by Manchester United in the league and crashing out of the Champions League in the group phase.
“I don’t think that we played a good game,” said Mancini. “It’s unusual for us because in a final, you (usually) play better.”
True to expectations, City started on the front foot, with Wigan goalkeeper Joel Robles forced to parry a dipping Yaya Toure half-volley in the fourth minute after Carlos Tevez hit the wall with a free-kick.
Wigan refused to be cowed, however, and City soon found themselves on the back foot. It was not until the 29th minute that City showed signs of life as an attacking force, with Robles narrowly diverting an effort from a sliding Tevez over the bar.
For Wigan, Shaun Maloney almost broke the deadlock with a cunning free-kick from wide on the right that bounced off the top of the bar.or felling McManaman as he bore down on goal. In the first minute of injury time, Watson glanced Maloney’s corner past Hart to write his name in cup final history.
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