Stoke Stoke City
2-2
Wigan Wigan Athletic

Shawcross (23'), Crouch (48')

FT(HT: 1-0)

McArthur (50'), Di Santo (61')

Preview

Match Analysis: Stoke City 2-2 Wigan Athletic

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 29 January 2013

Sports Mole analyses tonight's Premier League match between Stoke and Wigan which saw the visitors come back from two goals down to draw 2-2.

Wigan Athletic moved out of the relegation zone this evening after coming from behind to secure a 2-2 draw away to Stoke City.

Ryan Shawcross gave the Potters a lead going into the half-time interval, and Peter Crouch doubled that lead shortly after the restart.

James McArthur hit straight back to make it 2-1, however, before setting up Franco Di Santo for the equaliser.

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at a good night for Roberto Martinez's men.

Match statistics:

Stoke:
Shots 8
On target 4
Possession 50%
Corners 0
Fouls 12

Wigan:
Shots 9
On target 5
Possession 50%
Corners 1
Fouls 9

Was the result fair?

A draw was probably the fairest result, yes. Stoke deserved their lead at the break, but Wigan showed great spirit to fight back in the second half and deserved at least a point for their efforts. Wigan fans would argue that they deserved all three points, and if anyone did it was probably them but, on the balance of the whole match, a draw was fair.

Stoke's performance

The fans' boos at the final whistle said it all really. Despite scoring two goals, they looked pretty toothless in attack and failed to create much throughout. Their first goal was lucky and their second came from a rebound. They were the better team in the first half, but that was more because Wigan were so bad. The Potters were thoroughly outplayed in the second half and are perhaps fortunate to come away with a point.

Wigan's performance

In the first half, dreadful. They were a non-entity and a team playing better than Stoke could have put four or five past them. The second half was much better, however, as Wigan began to string a few passes together and threaten when going forward. Many teams have tried and failed to outplay Stoke at the Britannia, but Wigan managed it in the second half.

Sports Mole's man of the match

James McArthur: This award has to be based solely on 45 minutes of football as no player was impressive throughout the whole 90. James McArthur was at the front of Stoke's comeback, though, scoring the first with a tidy finish and setting up the equaliser as well.

Biggest gaffe

This has to go to the attempts to clear Charlie Adam's free kick by Wigan. Jean Neausejour's header came back off his own man, sending Shawcross through to slot the ball past a helpless Ali Al Habsi.

Referee performance

Michael Jones didn't have any major decisions to make, but his overall performance was below par. He made a scrappy game even scrappier by giving a number of soft free kicks, while at some points he showed a lack of consistency for not blowing for fouls when he should have done. The Stoke fans were certainly unhappy with his performance.

What next?

Stoke: Next up for Stoke is an away trip to face Arsenal on Saturday.

Wigan: Wigan, meanwhile, host fellow strugglers Southampton in a big relegation battle.