Unexpected Winners- Wigan Athletic 2013 FA Cup
Our second unexpected FA Cup winner in the series so far, Wigan Athletic shocked everybody in 2013 when they lifted England’s biggest domestic prize.
The Latics’ feat could very easily be compared with that of Birmingham City who we looked at last week. The main reason for that comparison is the two teams’ status in the Premier League, with both fighting to remain in the top flight.
It looked increasingly unlikely that Wigan would win the competition after a 1-1 draw against League One Bournemouth in the third round. The second leg was decided by a goal from Mauro Boselli but it was a far from convincing 1-0 win.
They then faced non-league Macclesfield in the fourth round and used a Jordi Gomez penalty to sneak through and set up a fifth round tie with Huddersfield Town.
Dave Whelan had entrusted his Latics side to the management of one, Roberto Martinez. The Spaniard had spent six years at Wigan in his playing days and after a hugely successful spell in charge of Swansea, leading them to a League One title and Championship security, Whelan appointed Martinez as manager in June of 2009.
Wigan were a solid Premier League team under the reign of Martinez and made a miraculous escape from relegation at the end of the 2011/12 season, winning seven games out of nine in their run in. However, an inability to strengthen the squad fully and the fact the existing squad wasn’t particularly flush with talent meant the Latics were in a very similar position the following season. In fact, after the 16th gameweek, Wigan spent 17 of the last 22 weeks in the relegation zone.
This made their FA Cup run all the more improbable, and Martinez’s men showed some real form in their 5th round tie, putting four goals past Huddersfield with an Arouna Kone brace, to win 4-1. They then followed that up, with a magnificent 3-0 win away at Goodison Park against Everton in the quarter final to set up a date at Wembley with Millwall in the semi-final.
Goals from Shaun Maloney and Callum McManaman put Wigan into the final where they would face Roberto Mancini’s Manchester City. Understandably, the Latics were massive underdogs, considering that City had won their first top flight title since 1968 the season before and had an extremely talented squad that contained the likes of Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Vincent Kompany.
The Citizens had pushed aside Watford, Stoke City, Leeds United, Barnsley and Chelsea on their way to the final and many were expecting the game to be a comfortable one sided affair.
Wigan clearly hadn’t read the script though and put in a spirited and dogged performance to frustrate Mancini’s men. The Latics midfield of James McCarthy, James McArthur and Jordi Gomez covered every blade of grass in North London and created their fair share of chances.
Martinez was understandably reluctant to change the team too much, given the level of performance, and only made one substitution in the game. It proved to be the pivotal moment in the match though, with Ben Watson replacing Gomez with 10 minutes to go. In the first minute of injury time, Wigan won a corner and Maloney’s delivery was turned in by Watson at the near post to secure the Latics first FA Cup in history and make Emmerson Boyce one of the most unlikely captains to lift the famous trophy.
Just three days later though, Martinez’s men would be relegated to the Championship and he would leave for Everton. He’s gone on to manage Belgium internationally but Wigan have never been back to the Premier League since having problems with points deductions and their finances. Mancini was sacked two days after the defeat and City have only got better since then, winning multiple titles under Pep Guardiola.
Nevertheless, the Latics achievement is remarkable and are one of the only teams to play in European competition, despite being in the second tier.