Wigan Athletic manager Gary Caldwell has said his team have no option but to win against Brentford despite the fact they are already relegated from the Sky Bet Championship.
Their descent down to League One was confirmed on Tuesday when Rotherham beat Reading 2-1 which ensured the Millers would enjoy a second consecutive season in the Championship.
But despite the devastation Caldwell has insisted that the Latics must throw everything at Brentford to send out the message that they are going to win League One next season.
“As soon as the second goal went in at Rotherham my thoughts went straight to League One and planning to win League One,” said the Scotsman.
“I want to win tomorrow, I want to win every game I ever play whether it be training or a board game with the kids and Saturday is no different.”
Brentford, who sit in seventh place, have a slim chance of making the play-offs if they win but should Derby County win against Reading, their chances of promotion will be lost.
With fire in the Bees’ bellies Wigan will be in for a tough battle but Caldwell is keen to keep all the teams on edge and send out a message to their opponents of next season.
He added: “We’ll approach it in the same manner that we would if we still had a chance to stay in the league.
“The message to the players, both today and tomorrow, is that we have to win this game. Brentford are obviously going for the play-offs and there are plenty of other teams that it could affect.”
Club chairman David Sharpe has also insisted that promotion is a must next season and is confident that the Latics will bounce back stronger.
“Football is full of examples of clubs who have come back stronger after relegation and I want us to be the latest one of those,” said the grandson of former chairman Dave Whelan.
“At Wigan Athletic we believe, so let’s dust ourselves down and be ready for the challenge of getting this club promoted at the first attempt.”
Main image courtesy of Wigan Athletic via YouTube, with thanks.
