After going through some difficult times recently, including an administration that lasted from July 2020 to March 2021 and being the target of a winding up petition in the summer of 2023, Wigan Athletic appears to be headed back in the right direction.
The Latics were spared that fate thanks to new owner Mike Danson, who bought the team last summer and instilled a sustainable culture that the team’s two prior ownership groups did not always uphold.
Shaun Maloney, the manager of the Greater Manchester team, has performed admirably in leading the team he used to play for to a top-half League One finish in spite of starting the season with an eight-point deduction and being subject to a transfer ban for the last two windows.
Maloney has made the most of his club’s youth academy products, as demonstrated by the 2023–24 season performances of players like Charlie Hughes and Sam Tickle, two England youth internationals.
Latics supporters are excited about the possibility of the former Hibernian manager being able to sign his own players because the 41-year-old has performed admirably with limited resources, finishing in an unexpected 12th place despite only being able to use free agent signings, graduates of the youth academy, and players signed by previous managers.
Max Power is a former summer signing that the Brick Community Stadium supporters will always remember. He first came to Greater Manchester from Tranmere Rovers in 2015.
Latics should always strive to emulate Power transfer
The 21-year-old former Tranmere player joined Latics in the summer of 2015 and went on to establish himself as a mainstay of the team, winning three League One titles with Wigan in two different stints.
Maloney ought to be eager to add seasoned players to the team, but Power is evidence that youthful additions can develop into seasoned promotion winners.
During the 2015–16 third-tier season, the central midfielder scored six goals and provided eight assists, which helped the Latics win the 2016 League One championship.
Though he did not score any goals, his six assists were enough to keep the Greater Manchester team from going straight back to League One, so he was unable to keep his team out of the Championship the following season.
However, Power returned to form for the Latics in 2018, helping to score five goals and assist seven more as they defeated Blackburn Rovers, their local rivals, to win the third tier title.
In the summer of 2018, he decided to leave the team, which was then run by Paul Cook, and join Sunderland, where he remained until making a return visit to the stadium that was once known as DW Stadium in the summer of 2021.
He helped the Latics win his third League One title with the team in 2022 after the Black Cats were unable to promote him for three straight seasons.
The former Tranmere player reached new heights in the 2021–2022 campaign, netting three goals and dishing out twelve assists. He also demonstrated his value playing both conventional midfield duties and at right-back for Wigan under Leam Richardson.
Ironically, the Black Cats advanced through the play-offs that season and went on to establish themselves as a reliable Championship team, while the Latics were demoted to the third division in 2023, forcing Power to relocate to Saudi Arabia.
Power is a fan favourite
Power’s three promotions from League One have made him an absolute cult hero in WN5, even though he was never able to produce in the Championship. He also played a part in the team’s surprising 1-0 FA Cup victory over Manchester City in 2017–18, which saw the third-tier team advance to the quarterfinals.
Over the years, he has also delighted fans with spectacular goals, such as goals against Chesterfield and Swindon Town in 2016 that sent the Latics, then led by Gary Caldwell, stumbling towards championships.
Although Power will be difficult for any other summer acquisition the team makes to fill, he is a great model to have in place for the Latics’ hiring staff.
