FOOTBALL USED TO BE ABOUT WINNING SILVERWARE BUT,  AS THOMAS BLOW ARGUES, IT’S NOW ABOUT MAINTAINING YOUR PLACE AT THE TOP...

Highs and lows: Wigan savour FA Cup success shortly before being relegated

IN APRIL 2013, Wigan Athletic, perennial Premier League strugglers, faced Millwall in the FA Cup semi-final.
Speaking before the match, Latics owner Dave Whelan said: “Staying up is more important than winning the semi-final. I have promised the players a holiday in Barbados - not for winning the FA Cup but for staying up.”
At the time I found this hard to believe. Wigan had never ...