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Spurs saved by late own goal, Liverpool hit six

Sport
LONDON — A late Emmerson Boyce own goal gave Champions League-chasing Tottenham Hotspur a 2-2 draw at lowly Wigan Athletic

LONDON — A late Emmerson Boyce own goal gave Champions League-chasing Tottenham Hotspur a 2-2 draw at lowly Wigan Athletic that did little to help either side at contrasting ends of the English Premier League football table on Saturday.

Report by Reuters

Spurs fans are fretting they will miss out on Europe’s premier competition yet again as they stayed fifth and missed the chance to jump into third with four games left, behind second-placed Manchester City who beat West Ham United 2-1.

Liverpool, in seventh position, recorded the biggest victory of the day as Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson scored twice in a 6-0 rout at struggling Newcastle United.

Perennial strugglers Wigan, looking for a ninth straight season in the top flight, remained third from bottom having thought they would climb out of the drop zone after Callum McManaman scored from 25 metres with a searing 49th-minute effort.

“It should have been three points. I thought the performance was magnificent from start to finish,” Wigan manager Roberto Martinez said.

“We gave them a goal, but then we deservedly got back in front. To keep a Spurs team so quiet, they only had threats from dead ball situations, is great. We dropped two points, but we couldn’t have done anything more.”

Boyce conceded in the last minute when a cross hit him and went in after Gareth Bale had missed his kick.

The defender had first equalised for Wigan with a towering header after 11 minutes, shortly after Spurs had opened the scoring in comical fashion.

Wigan’s Honduran defender Maynor Figueroa casually passed back to goalkeeper Joel Robles who fired the ball against the onrushing Bale and watched it fly into the goal.

Figueroa ended a miserable personal performance when he was carried off on a stretcher with a suspected groin injury which could rule him out of the FA Cup final against City at Wembley on May 11.

City gave the fans something to cheer in their first game since being deposed as Premier League champions with superb goals from Sergio Aguero and Yaya Toure in a deserved home win over West Ham.

Fifth from bottom Newcastle are only five points above Wigan, who occupy the final relegation place, following their mauling by Liverpool who made light of the absence of top striker Luis Suarez who started his 10-game ban for biting. Doubles from Daniel Sturridge and Henderson, a header by Daniel Agger and a Fabio Borini strike moments after he came on as a substitute led Liverpool to victory. Newcastle also had defender Mathieu Debuchy sent off for a second yellow card.