Source: Daily_Mail
Roberto Martinez: I promise Wigan's 9-1 defeat to Tottenham was just a freak
It was, says Roberto Martinez, 'without a doubt' the biggest game of his life. The Wigan manager is pondering not the 9-1 defeat by Tottenham last November but the match that followed six days later, a 1-0 win over Sunderland. [LNB]Plucked from early managerial success at Swansea after his swashbuckling team won the League One title, the 36-year-old Catalan was four months into his Premier League career and looking decidedly vulnerable. [LNB]Turning Wigan from a muscular, direct side into one based on a classic Spanish passing game sounded nice but had the potential to end in calamity. [LNB] Crushed: Jermain Defoe lashes in his fourth goal against Wigan in the 9-1 win[LNB]Conceding eight goals in a catastrophic second half seemed to confirm the opinions of the cynics. [LNB]After such an unprecedented humiliation, a further defeat might have been confirmation that Martinez's idealism was unsuited to the unforgiving Premier League. The football world was watching and waiting. [LNB]'I was aware everyone would be interested to see that scoreline (against Sunderland) and how we were going to react,' he said. 'But the moment you lose focus and you think too much about that bigger picture, you can't affect the smaller things. [LNB]Bad memories: Martinez[LNB]'I was so focused on what I was doing. The mental side of having a clubprepared to go into that game, that was the biggest challenge we had.We were extremely volatile during the week. You could see the minds ofthe players were up and down, the confidence was non-existent. That'swhy the Sunderland game was such a big result.[LNB]'By the Friday I was very confident. We were desperate to get out there and express ourselves.' [LNB]'It was the biggest game of my career, a real test,' he said. 'To lose 9-1 and then win the next game shows the character of the group and the leadership material within themselves, the winning mentality. I was extremely proud.' [LNB]Today Wigan revisit that terrible afternoon, with Spurs the guests at the DW Stadium, but Martinez has no fear. [LNB]'If you analyse the Tottenham game, at half-time we went in at a good moment but in the second half we conceded eight goals in 40 minutes, which is impossible to explain. It's a freak event.' [LNB]There has only been one Premier League win since that Sunderland game but five draws indicate a taste for survival that Martinez requires if his footballing philosophy is to flourish. Now he talks about Wigan passing their way into the Europa League. [LNB]'The only way we would get to go into Europe, which is what I wanted for Wigan, is mastering what we're trying to do at the moment,' he said. 'It's not going to be easy, we're going to get to difficult times, but I've been proud of the way we've won the points so far. [LNB]'We need to ensure we stay in the Premier League and once we achieve that we will be ready to go to the next level.'[LNB] Wigan boss Martinez craves revenge for 9-1 horror mauling at TottenhamNine reasons to be careful: Redknapp on guard for Spurs trip to WiganWIGAN ATHLETIC FC
