Martinez: Avoiding drop harder than ever

Wigan boss Roberto Martinez believes it will take more than 40 points to ensure Premier League survival this year.

The Latics host Aston Villa on Tuesday at DW Stadium, with both sides desperate for points to climb up the table.

“You just feel you’re going to need more points than were needed last season, closer to 40 points this time round,” said Martinez.

“There are so many games so that’s going to have a massive bearing on how many points are going to be needed.””If you look at the last third of the campaign, there are many sides that are fighting for the same aims at both ends.”

“It’s fascinating competition. There are five teams that can win the title, eight teams trying to avoid relegation – you don’t see that in any other competition in world football,” added the Spaniard.

Gerard Houllier’s Villa side will head to Wigan buoyed by Saturday’s 1-0 win over Manchester City, with new record signing Darren Bent scoring the only goal of the game, and Martinez knows it will be a tough test for his struggling side.

“They’ve come off the back of a very good result and a very good performance,” he said.

“They’re going to come here with a great feeling and we need to be prepared to face that. The Villa side have huge experience, enormous talent and with the new signing they are a team that are enjoying a great moment in their campaign.”

Wigan defender Gary Caldwell will miss the tie as he serves a one-match ban for his sending off during the 3-0 loss at Arsenal on Saturday, while defender Antolin Alcaraz is also unavailable with a soft tissue injury.

Goalkeeper Chris Kirkland could return to the side, however Martinez may been keen to stick with Omani stopper Ali Al-Habsi after he produced a string on fine saves during Sunday’s 3-0 loss to Arsenal.