By Ayomide Oriade
Manchester city manager, Manuel Pellegrini has expressed dismay at the way his team approached their quarter-final tie with Wigan on Sunday. The angry Chilean branded it the ‘worst half we’ve had in the year.’
According to pellegrini, his players were complacent against a team on the up and it cost them dearly. “I think it’s the worst first half we’ve had in the year because we didn’t have the pace to play against a team that is in a good moment. They won five games in a row so we knew before the match we are going to play a difficult team, maybe we thought that was not going to be so difficult and when we react it was too late.”
The city manager also stated that his team didn’t turn up on the night as they lacked the tempo and intensity required to face such a determined Wigan side. “We knew exactly how Wigan play; it’s not a tactical problem, it was a pace problem, a tempo problem. In the last 35 minutes they continue playing the same way and we continue playing the same way. We had at least three of four chances to score more goals. When you don’t have the same intensity it’s very difficult to win,” he said.
Goals from Jordi Gomez and James Perch put Wigan ahead while Samir Nasri’s goal was a mare consolation as Wigan upset City for the second time in successive seasons in the FA Cup.
