Wigan revive Euro bid

2006-04-19 10:30

Wigan - Wigan got their bid for European football next season back on track with a 3-2 win over Aston Villa, their first home win of 2006, to move up into eighth in the Premiership table on Tuesday.

Jimmy Bullard put Wigan ahead with a well-struck volley in the 25th minute before Villa levelled early in the second-half through Juan Pablo Angel.

But two goals in quick succession from Wigan striker Henri Camara made it 3-1 before Villa's Liam Ridgewell pulled one back with 23 minutes left at the JJB Stadium.

The upshot was that Wigan's extraordinary first season amongst English football's elite, which saw the club reach the League Cup final after being widely tipped for relegation, had been reignited after some poor results and left the Lancashire club scrapping with the likes of near-neighbours Bolton and Blackburn, as well as Newcastle, for a Uefa Cup spot.

As for Villa, any breathing space manager David O'Leary may have enjoyed after the weekend derby win against Birmingham City could have disappeared.

Defeat was the last thing O'Leary wanted after newspaper reports linked Charlton boss and England candidate Alan Curbishley, a former Villa player, with a return to the Midlands club at the end of the season.

Villa, European champions in 1982, remained 15th in the table and 10 points above the relegation zone - not bad for some teams but a source of frustration to fans who still regard their team as a "big club".

Bullard produced the one moment of class in an otherwise dreary first-half when, after Jason Roberts's cross was only partly cleared by Villa defender Gary Cahill, he made a perfect connection with a volley that flew into the top corner of the net.

Villa though levelled early in the second-half when Angel got on the end of substitute Gabriel Agbonlahor's cross.

But two goals in the space of five minutes from Senegal star Camara put Wigan back on top. He first beat Thomas Sorensen with fine solo effort before linking well with Pascal Chimbonda to make it 3-1 on the hour mark.

Ridgewell gave the visitors a lifeline when he beat Wigan's offside trap to flick a deflected cross past Australian goalkeeper John Filan but, despite some nervy moments, Wigan held out.

- AFP