Arsenal condemn Wigan to relegation - and give themselves the best chance for Champions Leauge all season

Wigan became the first FA Cup winners to be relegated from the top flight in the same season after a 4-1 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium sent them down.

 

Shaun Maloney's free-kick sent Wigan into half-time on terms after Lukas Podolski had given Arsenal the lead.

But hopes of a dramatic escape were washed away by a flood of catastrophic defensive lapses as Arsenal struck three times in eight minutes through Theo Walcott, Podolski and Aaron Ramsey.
Wigan lurched painfully from triumph to despair just three days after winning the FA Cup for the first time in their history with a 1-0 win over Manchester City at Wembley.

Owner Dave Whelan now faces losing not only his club's top flight status, but his manager Roberto Martinez and leading players including Maloney and Callum McManaman.

They are marooned in 18th place, four points behind Sunderland and five behind Aston Villa whom they play on the final day - those two clubs can breathe long sighs of relief after a trying season. Wigan join QPR and Reading in the Championship.

Arsenal now need a win at Newcastle on Sunday to guarantee fourth place and Champions League football at the expense of North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Martinez banned alcohol after Wigan's Wembley triumph, but Arsenal attacked vigorously from the off in search of a Cup final hangover and found their opponents - metaphorically at least - reaching groggily for the Alka Seltzer after 72 hours of celebration.

Walcott, effervescent down the right wing, crossed for Santi Cazorla who nipped in front of his marker but headed wide of the right-hand post.

Wigan found themselves under the sort of pressure Manchester City could not muster and soon cracked in miserable fashion.

Cazorla delivered a corner from the Arsenal left and Podolski somehow found himself completely unmarked as he headed the bouncing ball in from six yards.

Roberto Martinez's side barely had a kick, let alone a shot, in the first haf-hour, but they gradually came into the game through the ever-lively Maloney and McManaman.

Maloney won and scored the equalising free-kick amid controversy - the Scot appeared to back into Mikel Arteta as he was tackled but Mike Dean penalised the Arsenal captain.

Maloney punished him with a beautiful free-kick that flashed over the wall and into the right corner of the net.

Wigan needed victory to maintain any realistic chance of survival and continued to attack after the break - however without the injured Maynor Figueroa their awful defending cost them dear.
On 63 minutes Antolin Alcaraz failed to cut out a Santi Cazorla cross and Walcott stole in to finish from close range.

Shortly afterwards Podolski grabbed his second after Paul Scharner played him miles onside, allowing the German to collect a headed Cazorla through ball and lift the ball past Joel Robles.
Ramsey then drove the final nail in the coffin, dribbling inside from the left, deceiving Joel with his eyes and finding the far corner from a tight angle.

Poorly as Wigan defended, the damage was done well before tonight - though Martinez still emerges from this season with credit, he will wonder how a side capable of such heroics could end up in the second tier

Arsenal vs Wigan predictions

Arsenal have two fixtures left in the Premier League this season. Both Arsenal and Wigan have plenty to play for as Arsenal are still in the hunt for Champions League football next season and Wigan currently holds the 18th spot in the Premiership table, a spot that means relegation. In my opinion this is therefore more like a cup game rather than a league game.

Arsenal is 10-4-3 in the Premier League since January, and hasn't lost a game in the last eight. They haven't got any new injury worries either. Oliver Giroud is out through suspension. Wenger has plenty of attacking options though, so he has no excuses.

Wigan triumphed in the FA Cup final and will come into this game on a high. They'll need that against a motivated Arsenal side that won't underestimate them. Wigan hasn't reported new injuries, but Beausejour, Figueroa and Stam will still be out.

Arsenal is a through and through quality side in more than decent form. They have players that can cut through most defences. I am pretty sure we will see Arsenal in full flow here trying to attack. This is mainly due to Wigan's poor defensive record in the EPL as of late. Wigan has let in two goals or more in their last four Premiership games.

Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur: The implications for the top four race

The battle between Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal for a Champions League place could take a decisive turn on Wednesday night, what are the implications of the possible results at Stamford Bridge?

 

Chelsea's win at Manchester United has put them in an excellent position ahead of Wednesday's match against Tottenham Hotspur, with a win certain to see them finish in the top four. Here is a run-down of the implications for Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal of the possible results at Stamford Bridge.


Draw

For Spurs, drawing at Stamford Bridge would give them one significant advantage, in that Arsenal would have to win both of their last two games to be sure of finishing above them. Chelsea would still be two points clear in third with a draw, and four points in their last two games against Aston Villa and Everton would likely secure them that third position.

Spurs would almost certainly still have to beat Stoke and Sunderland to finish in the top four, but a draw at Stamford Bridge would pile far more pressure on Arsenal, who would know that any dropped points would put the Champions League place in Spurs hands.

          # Team                                         GP             W          D        L          GF           GA          PTS

3	Chelsea	36	20	9	7	?	?	69
4	Arsenal	36	19	10	7	67	36	67
5	Spurs	36	19	9	8	?	?	66

Chelsea win 
 
 
A home win will see the Blues four points clear of Arsenal and six points ahead of Spurs with two games left, and given their huge goal difference advantage over Andre Villas-Boas' side, they will be assured a Champions League place for next season. The win at Old Trafford has put a whole new complexion on the match, and Spurs and Arsenal might already consider Chelsea as secure in the top four, leaving them to go head to head over the last couple of games.

If Spurs lose, they will have to beat Stoke and Sunderland in their last two games, whilst also hoping Arsenal either lose one of their games against Wigan and Newcastle, or draw both, as the Gunners' goal difference is far better than Spurs'. A Chelsea win leaves Arsenal needing four points to finish in the top four, and realistically settles the race.

          # Team                                         GP             W          D        L          GF           GA          PTS

3	Chelsea	36	21	8	7	?	?	71
4	Arsenal	36	19	10	7	67	36	67
5	Spurs	36	19	8	9	?	?	65

Tottenham Hotspur win

The least likely result is also the one that would blow the race wide open, as it would leave Spurs and Chelsea level on 68 points and ahead of Arsenal on 67. The result would see Chelsea and Spurs needing to win their final two games to guarantee themselves third and fourth respectively.

This is the only result that takes Arsenal's place in the top four out of their hands, and indeed the only one that puts real pressure on Chelsea's place in next year's Champions League.
 
            # Team                                         GP             W          D        L          GF           GA          PTS
3        Chelsea                                           36             20          8         8           ?               ?              68

4        Spurs                                             36             20          8         8           67             36              68

5       Arsenal                                           36             19          10       7           ?               ?              67

One final thing worth noting is that Wigan's FA Cup final appearance means that Arsenal could find themselves in fifth by the time they play them next week whatever the result on Wednesday night, as Spurs and Chelsea play this weekend. You would back the Gunners to win that game in hand whatever pressure they are under, but it will give Chelsea and Spurs a chance to test Arsenal's resolve if they can win their tricky away games at Stoke and Aston Villa.