-
Wigan 3-3 Blackburn: Yakube late-penalty, Pedersen corner controversy
Paul Robinson became the unlikeliest of Blackburn heroes as he won his ten-man team a penalty in the final seconds of the sixth minute of injury time to salvage a 3-3 draw against Wigan in a pulsating Premier League clash at the DW Stadium.
Many pundits predicted a dour draw between the sides at the foot of the table scrapping for their Premier League lives. And they would have been right although the drama that unfolded at the DW Stadium will live long in the memory.
Behind 3-2 and down to ten men in the final seconds of the sixth added on minute, up came Paul Robinson for a final, surely hopeless fling of the dice. And as the former England number 1 launched himself at the ball for a header, David Jones also went for the ball with his foot. The resultant penalty was calmly dispatched by Ayegbeni Yakubu to the delight of the remaining away fans that had not left the stadium.
The result will have done neither team any great favours as the shared point leaves them both at the foot of the table. But what a game of football they produced.
Many pundits predicted a dour draw between the sides at the foot of the table scrapping for their Premier League lives. And they would have been right although the drama that unfolded at the DW Stadium will live long in the memory.
Behind 3-2 and down to ten men in the final seconds of the sixth added on minute, up came Robinson for a final, surely hopeless fling of the dice. And as the former England number 1 launched himself at the ball for a header, David Jones also went for the ball with his foot. The resultant penalty was calmly dispatched by Yakubu to the delight of the remaining away fans that had not left the stadium.
The result will have done neither team any great favours as the shared point leaves them both at the foot of the table. But what a game of football they produced.
Although Wigan dominated the first half, Blackburn actually looked the livlier side early on and took a shock lead just two minutes in as Yakubu latched onto a cute Nzonzi flick header to lift the ball past Al Habsi and into the corner of the net.
From then on, it was pretty much one-way Wigan traffic with Conor Sammon and Victor Moses terrorising the visiting defence. And they got their reward when Gomez lashed a left-footed drive into the corner from the edge of the box although Robinson may well have been unsighted by Sammon. Replays suggested he also could have been in an offside position.
With Blackburn struggling for parity, David Dunn was then booked for a bad tackle on James McCarthay but the visitors nearly nicked one back as Morten Gamst Pederson's thunderous free-kick cannoned off the post. Shortly afterwards, Wigan deservedly took the lead when Caldwell rose unmarked to nod in Jones' corner. It was no more than the home side deserved and they could have had at least one more before the break as Moses first blazed over from six yards out then headed over when it looked easier to score.
Blackburn were much the happier to see the half-time whistle but if they thought they had their work cut out in the first half, things were about to get worse early in the second as a clumsy challenge from behind from Dunn resulted in a second yellow.
Far from wilting under the pressure, the visitors rolled their sleeves up and were rewarded with a controversial equaliser in the 59th minute. Yakubu dummied the corner and left it to Pedersen, who played the ball to himself from the corner and rolled it across the box for David Hoilett to bundle home.
Yakubu then squandered a great one-on-one chance before Robinson kept his side in it with a cracking save to keep out substitute Hugo Rodallega's point blank effort. But memories of the save were soon forgotten as the dangerous Albert Crusat, on as a substitute, poked home from Rodallega's header and beneath Robinson's sluggish dive with only two minutes of normal time remaining.
So the points were surely Wigan's and the blushes all Robinson's but for a late, dramatic intervention.
Source: Fraser Masefield / Eurosport
Teams Line-up:
Wigan Athletic: Al Habsi, Gohouri, McCarthy, Moses, Gomez, Sammon, Jones, Diame, Stam, Caldwell (c), Figueroa. Subs: Pollitt, Crusat, Watson, Maloney, McArthur, Rodallega, Lopez
Blackburn Rovers: Robinson, Salgado, Givet, Dunn, Pedersen, Nzonzi, Dann, Rochina, Hoilett, Yakubu, Hanley. Subs: Forimca, Petrovic, Blackman, Roberts, Goodwillie, Henley, Bunn.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments: