Laws targets 'fragile' Latics

Burnley boss says Wigan have underperformed

By Carla Hilton   Last updated: 19th March 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Laws targets 'fragile' Latics

Laws: Wigan challenge

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Burnley boss Brian Laws believes Wigan have underperformed this season.

The two sides meet on Saturday at the DW Stadium knowing that a win is essential in order to boost their chances of surviving in the Premier League.

It is game on for both managers with Wigan struggling for form and Burnley very much in the same boat.

The Clarets have not won a single away game this season and Laws is determined to stop the rot against Wigan.

No stranger to confrontation, he says Roberto Martinez's side will be feeling the pressure now as the season draws to an end which will put Burnley in the driving seat at the weekend.

Pressure

"Wigan will feel the pressure because they should be looking at this as a three-pointer, and we have to start asking them questions," he said.

"For me they are a team that has underachieved. They are a good side, good individuals, and they shouldn't be where they are.

"We have to take that as a positive and say they have got weakness and they are fragile."

Laws has clashed with Martinez in the past and says he knows what is expected for his side to get what they so crave.

"I've done battles with Roberto Martinez in the Championship and he plays the same kind of system, and if you allow it to happen it can cause you problems as Liverpool discovered last week," he said.

"We know tactically what the game is going to be about, and I think we have to add a bit of spice to it.

"We have to play like it's the last game of the season but we want to bring Wigan within touching distance of us."

He added: "We have not won away this season but there has to be a turning point. It's only a matter of time and we will get that little bit of luck that every team needs."

Panic

Laws says that it is this time of the season where panic sets in for most clubs which is what he believes happened with Hull City who got rid of Phil Brown this week.

"I think panic does set in," he said. "Finances in football clubs are critical and Hull for instance have huge bills.

"There is panic there because if they go out of this Premier League they have got a major problem and that's why they have made the decision around Phil Brown.

"It's not just Hull City. There are other clubs around the bottom who are feeling the pressure and we have to capitalise on that.

"Everyone is writing us off anyway so let's go out there and prove people wrong."