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Wenger delighted with win but sad for Wigan

Arsene Wenger is confident Arsenal will finish fourth in the Premier League © PA Photos

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Arsene Wenger was pleased with how his side performed in the 4-1 victory over Wigan - but the Frenchman was sad to see Tuesday's opponents being relegated to the Championship.

Arsenal jumped above Tottenham and into fourth spot in the Premier League with an emphatic victory over Saturday's FA Cup winners, and Wenger heaped praise on his side and acknowledged the efforts of Wigan.

"I am happy that we won the game. We had a good start but then became a bit conservative and got caught just before half-time," Wenger told Sky Sports.

"At 1-1, Wojciech [Szczesny] made a good save and then in the last 20 minutes the fact that we maintained the pace, and they were tired from the FA Cup final, gave us a big win."

Wigan needed to win in order to take the fight for survival into the final game of the season, but after equalising on the stroke of half-time the Lactics fell apart in the second period, and have become the first team to win the FA Cup and suffer relegation in the same season.

"You want to congratulate Wigan and you feel sorry for them, because with the quality of football they play it is sad that they go down," Wenger said.

"Wigan are a good footballing side with intelligent players and it is difficult to understand, but that is the harsh truth of the game."

In the battle for fourth place - the final Champions League spot - Wenger is confident Arsenal's nine-match unbeaten streak will help them finish above Tottenham and reach the competition next season.

"It has always been in our hands since recently," he said. "It is another big game on Sunday [against Newcastle] and we want to prepare for that and give it all again because we are on a very strong run. If you look at the number of wins we have, that is quite positive."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.