MX23RW : Friday, December 13 02:24:26| >> :120:27485:27485:

Match Analysis: Newcastle United 3-0 Wigan Athletic

Match Analysis: Newcastle 3-0 Wigan
© PA Photos
Sports Mole dissects the key action from Newcastle United's 3-0 win over Wigan Athletic.

Newcastle United recorded their first victory in eight games as they overcame Wigan Athletic in the Premier League earlier this evening.

Demba Ba opened the scoring from the penalty spot on 13 minutes, after Maynor Figueroa had been shown a straight red card for a professional foul on Papiss Cisse.

Ba then doubled his tally with a simple tap-in eight minutes later, before Gael Bigirimana opened his professional goal account to seal the win with a stunning long-range effort midway through the second half.

Below, Sports Mole looks back at the action and determines whether or not the Magpies were good value for their big win.

Match statistics:

Newcastle:
Shots 18
On target 8
Possession 50%
Corners 4
Fouls 13

Wigan:
Shots 10
On target 1
Possession 50%
Corners 4
Fouls 15

Was the result fair?

Newcastle were certainly the better side over 90 minutes, although they were far from convincing and the scoreline was more than a little flattering.

Newcastle's performance

The Magpies looked nervous early on, but they settled down once the penalty put them in front. However, they failed to engage their creative players. Jonas Gutierrez in particular was very disappointing.

Wigan's performance

The Latics looked composed and were impressive during the opening 10 minutes. However, the sending-off changed everything and Roberto Martinez's men failed to pose the opposition any real threat thereafter.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Demba Ba was the difference between the sides. It was his pass that played Cisse in to win the penalty. Ba was also typically clinical in front of goal, finding the net with two of his three shots.

Referee performance

Mike Jones made a big call in sending off Figueroa. The decision may have appeared a little harsh but, by the letter of the law, it was correct. However, Jones showed his soft side 10 minutes before half time, when he failed to issue a second yellow card to Gary Caldwell for a stupid pull on Ba.

Biggest gaffe

Cisse has now scored just four goals in 20 matches and, based on his performance tonight, those figures are very understandable. He had a great chance to make it 4-0 late on, but he failed to check his run and was inexcusably caught two yards offside.

What next?

Newcastle: The Magpies travel to Bordeaux in the Europa League on Thursday night, before returning to domestic action at Fulham a week today.

Wigan: Next up is a home match against relegation rivals Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.

ID:57749: cacheID:57749:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4820:
Written by
Robert Summerscales
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Demba Ba
Read Next:
Half-Time Report: Ba brace puts Newcastle in control
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
1.15am
Rams
@
49ers
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Wycombe WanderersWycombe18124239211840
2Wrexham19124328111740
3Birmingham CityBirmingham17123232161639
4Huddersfield TownHuddersfield18112528161235
5Stockport CountyStockport1996431191233
6Reading189453025531
7Bolton WanderersBolton179352827130
8Barnsley197662725227
9Lincoln CityLincoln197662423127
10Mansfield TownMansfield177372222024
11Exeter CityExeter187381619-324
12Charlton AthleticCharlton186571819-123
13Blackpool186572631-523
14Stevenage176471316-322
15Peterborough UnitedPeterborough186393332121
16Leyton Orient186391920-121
17Northampton TownNorthampton195682126-521
18Bristol Rovers186391726-921
19Wigan AthleticWigan185581516-120
20Rotherham UnitedRotherham175571620-420
21Crawley TownCrawley185491728-1119
22Cambridge UnitedCambridge1844101829-1116
23Burton Albion1825111630-1411
24Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury1832131835-1711


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!