Matt Smith was a key player in Shaun Maloney’s tenure as Wigan Athletic manager. If any player was almost irreplaceable in the Latics legend’s system, it was he. Maloney favoured a brand of possession football where moves are patiently built up from the back. Smith played the role of pivot in front of the central defenders, providing both extra defensive stability and creativity going forward. His serious hamstring injury near the end of December was a hammer blow to a manager who was struggling to impose his style of play on a young squad.
The Maloney era was one which helped stabilise a club that had come so close to going out of existence. The Scot had to operate on a much-reduced budget than his predecessors and aim towards making the club sustainable though the development of young players. Sadly, he is largely remembered for lacklustre home displays last season that provided scant entertainment for the fans. However, there were moments in his two-year spell where it looked like the manager’s vision might eventually come to fruition. Matt Smith was the catalyst who enabled those glimpses of skilful, flowing football.
Smith is still only 24 years old. An ex-Arsenal youth and under-21 team captain, he spent loan spells at Charlton, Swindon and Doncaster before Maloney signed him on a free transfer in July 2023. Although Maloney used him solely in the pivot role, he had shown himself to be an all-round midfielder in his Gunners days where he notched 7 goals and 22 assists in 94 appearances for the Gunners age group teams His attacking skills were also prominent in his stay at Doncaster.
In last night’s League Cup victory over Stockport County, he was employed in the #6 role in front of the defence, Baba Adeeko and Tobias Brenan playing further forward as #8s. However, Tyrese Francois has looked comfortable this season in the #6 role, which is also Adeeko’s best position. It leaves Ryan Lowe with options on how to utilise his midfielders. Both Smith and Francois have the skills necessary to play the #8 position. Adeeko’s strength lies in his ability to close down the opposition and protect the defence. Creativity is not his forte.
The return of Matt Smith was a welcome sight last night. Latics fans have not seen enough of him in his two years at the club. A groin injury in his first season and hamstring injury in his second meant that he has was available for selection for only half the time he has been at the club. Providing he can stay fit he can play a major role in Ryan Lowe’s plans.
“We didn’t compete enough – we’ll address it on Monday morning, but the fact of the matter is, if you don’t compete, you’re not going to win.”
So said Ryan Lowe following an abject performance by his team.
Wigan’s performance was predictably dire. Predictable because Orient were wounded after losing their opening game, and Latics were probably made to look a bit better than they are against Northampton. The Carragher injury probem didn’t help. It was a bit if a nightmare for Sessegnon too.
Orient were far superior on the day. Lots of professional fouls to interrupt Latics, but with a fluid and dangerous front four. The Lowe version of hoofball – pass it back to Tickle so he can punt it as long as he can – will be frustrating against decent teams that can cope with it. But it’s percentage football and it could be enough to get Latics in contention for playoffs.
In January 2007 Denny Landzaat made a memorable comment reported by the Dutch press about Latics’ style of football under Steve Bruce:
“Some matches the long ball is the only kind we play… It quickly turns into lottery football… I often think that as I’m not getting the ball played to me, I might as well run to get on the end of it when it drops from the sky.”
The ball went over the heads of Wigan’s central midfielders yesterday too. The 19-year-old Tobias Brenan had made a promising debut against Northampton, but looked a passenger in the first half. It would be fascinating to see him in a more possession-based team because he looks skilful. Moreover, most of the balls that had reached Dara Costelloe and Christian Saydee up front could be described as “hoofballs”, as opposed to accurately aimed long balls.
Jamie Carragher’s knee injury after four minutes of play was a bitter blow for Lowe. Already deprived of the combative Will Aimson through suspension the manager had to resort to a back three that had not previously played together as a unit. Jon Melliish was moved to left centre back, with the hapless Sessegnon moved to the right. Mellish did not perform at all badly and he showed an energy that many of his teammates were devoid of on the day. New signing Morgan Fox was not on the bench yesterday but will stake a strong claim to the left central defensive possession when fully fit.
Lowe has an opportunity to give other members of his squad a try in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup game at home to Notts County. He will be looking to re-energise his team for Saturday’s League 1 home tie against Peterborough.
It is a long time since Wigan Athletic fans enjoyed the first game of the season so much. Latics beat Northampton 3-1, but the margin could easily have been greater. In a lacklustre first quarter, with Wigan lacking cohesion, it looked like it would take the players some time to gel, to effectively function as a unit. However, Fraser Murray’s brilliantly taken 29th minute goal was to rapidly accelerate the process. As the game proceeded the players seemed to thrive in their well-defined roles, providing a synergy that had been absent early on. They thoroughly deserved the warm applause they received from the home fans at the final whistle.
Lowe has based his summer recruitment on adapting the squad he inherited into one that can operate effectively in his preferred 3-1-4-2 system. It is a system where wing backs play a key role and it was highlighted by the fine performances of Murray and Joe Hungbo. Lowe had made it clear that he needed wing backs, rather than full backs. It looked like Steven Sessegnon, a specialist full back, was on his way out, but he was impressive in a new position on the left of the back three. He will be staying after all. However, Lowe considers Josh Robinson a full back and therefore unwanted. The player signed by Shaun Maloney from Arsenal in January has been practically invisible to us fans. Isaac Mabaya (20), signed on loan from Liverpool, certainly looked confident in the wing back position when he came on in the second half, for his debut in senior football. However, he was beaten to the ball for Northampton’s goal and he will need time to adjust to the demands of first team football.
Having wing backs means that natural wingers will have few opportunities unless the manager changes the shape. Dion Rankin appears to be on his way to Leyton Orient. Jonny Smith remains, although he was less than impressive as a wing back following Lowe’s arrival. Smith’s previous role as an inverted winger has no place in the manager’s style of play. Callum McManaman’s re-signing was a surprise as he too is a winger. However, both players have the capability of changing the course of a match through moments of individual brilliance. K’Marni Miller (19) was unavailable through injury on Saturday. He is an exciting prospect as a left wing back and Lowe recently gave him a new two- year contract. He will challenge Hungbo for that position.
With twin strikers being part of Lowe’s system, it was crucial that he brought in reinforcements. The exciting, talented, but raw, Maleace Asamoah (22) remains. The manager has done well to provide a wide range of attacking options by bringing in Dara Costelloe (23), Paul Mullin (31) and Christian Saydee (23). Costello looked comfortable in the orthodox centre forward role on Saturday, with Saydee behind or to the side of him receiving long balls and feeding his teammates in a manner reminiscent of Emile Heskey. Given feedback from Portsmouth supporters it was no surprise to see the powerfully-built forward have such a good game in that role. The downside is that Saydee’s career goalscoring record is akin to of another excellent target man for Latics, Marc-Antoine Fortune. Paul Mullin has a superb goalscoring record, although has not been convincing at League 1 level. But Mullin could be a key signing if he can get into gear. All four strikers have different attributes and Lowe can mix-and-match them as he pleases. It gives so many different options. Chris Sze (23) has had a career dogged by injury and a has yet to make his mark at senior level, but the player that Maloney said had as much technical ability as any in the squad remains at the club Lowe is certainly not short of midfield options. Tyrese Francois played in the defensive midfield role in front of the back three on Saturday and looked comfortable in the role. Baba Adeeko is excellent defensively in that position. Matt Smith played superbly there for Maloney, so capably helping the back three with the high press. At times, Smith’s incisive passing could have been more effectively employed further up field. Despite some injury problems over the past couple of seasons he does not have a career record of injuries. He played 45 games for Doncaster the season before joining Wigan. Lowe insists that Smith has a role to play.
On Saturday, Lowe played Jensen Weir (23) and Tobias Brenan (19) in the central midfield positions. Weir underperformed has last season, but Lowe has kept faith in him. He had his best game for the club on Saturday, scoring an opportunist goal with a bullet header. Brenan made a very positive debut, showing composure, despite nervousness. Lowe has sent Ronan Darcy on loan to Chesterfield after declaring that a #10 does not fit in his system. Harry McHugh (22) was surprisingly offered a new contract: Lowe surely sees him as a late developer. New loan signings Callum Wright (25) and Ryan Trevitt (22) will compete for places.
Last season’s defensive record last season was excellent. Sam Tickle showed himself as a shot-stopper of a quality way above League 1 and the back three were excellent in front of him. The trio of Carragher-Kerr-Aimson were formidable. However, Maloney’s style of football was based on a solid defence, but with forwards and midfielders also playing an important defensive role. Lowe has intimated that there will be an attacking approach in home matches, as it was on Saturday. However, away from home he will more cautious His record at Preston last season showed 35 goals scored at home and 21 away.
The signing of Morgan Fox (31) on a two-year contract is a positive statement from Lowe and the club. Fox has over 300 EFL appearances in his career, largely in the Championship. He is a left centre back. Will Aimson was mainly playing there since Lowe’s arrival, although he can play in any of the three centre back positions. With Steven Sessegnon, Jon Mellish and Luke Robinson also able to play in the left centre back position there will be stiff competition for the defensive positions, providing all those players stay at the club. Will there will be some departures (along with Josh Robinson) in order to balance the books?
There was speculation through recent weeks regarding the possible sale of Sam Tickle. However, Latics fans breathed a sigh of relief when Lowe stated categorically that the goalkeeper will not be leaving. Tickle is an outstanding young keeper in all areas except his distribution. Were it not for this weakness he would surely have been snapped up by a bigger club over the summer. Together with James Carragher he is the club’s most prized asset.
Up to this stage Lowe has done a fine job in rebalancing the squad to fit his preferred playing formation. His work is not yet finished and he will need to make more adjustments to ensure that staffing costs do not exceed the budget set by Mike Danson. Looking at the current squad there is certainly enough quality to finish in the top half of the table, barring major injuries. Injuries proved a major obstacle to Shaun Maloney in his tenure at Wigan. Lowe will be hoping he can keep them at a minimum as he seeks a top eight position, which would be by no means unlikely.
Ryan Lowe’s previous track record clearly appealed to Mike Danson when he was looking for someone to replace Shaun Maloney as manager of Wigan Athletic.
Lowe had a record of success at clubs where spending was limited, rather than profligate, as is the case with so many football clubs. The Liverpudlian led Bury and Plymouth to promotion out of League 2 in 2018-19 and 2019-20 respectively. That was followed by a stint at Preston where the club’s middling positions in the Championship showed that they were punching above their weight with staffing budgets being low relative to the majority of clubs in the division.
Lowe’s appointment in March was well received by Latics fans who had been frustrated by the defensive style of football under Shaun Maloney. However, the football on display in Lowe’s 11 games at the helm from then to the end of last season was no more entertaining, with the new manager adopting a “fightball approach”, with few memorable moments. When Lowe had taken over Latics had been in 15th place in League 1, 10 points clear of the relegation zone. The stats at the end of the season showed exactly the same results. Relegation has been avoided.
Lowe gained a reputation for attacking football early in his managerial career at Bury, employing a 3-4-1-2 formation. But goals were not easy to come by later at Preston where Will Keane was the highest scorer in his time there with 11 goals in 2023-24.
Long-standing fans recall Paul Jewell’s and Steve Bruce’s sides playing enterprising football with twin strikers and many very much welcome Lowe’s preference for the same. Some of them were critical of the Roberto Martinez era, preferring a more direct style of football, grudging of the manager’s success of keeping the club in the top tier for four more seasons and his staggering achievement of winning the FA Cup. The initial managerial appointments of both Gary Caldwell and Shaun Maloney from the Martinez days did not go down well with that faction.
Last summer’s player recruitment under Maloney was largely focused on signing younger players with potential sell-on values. It was a reaction to the club previously being saddled with older players on bloated salaries and long contracts who could not be moved on, a massive drain on finances. Maloney’s summer recruitment largely brought in players of 25 years of age or less, who had been identified as having potential to develop further given the right coaching environment. Salaries offered were commensurate to that of a club seeking sustainability, rather than one looking for a quick-fix for promotion. But Danson backed Maloney in the transfer market by allowing him a figure in the region of £1m to bring in players to supplement a collection of free agents and young loan players.
Lowe has also been backed by Danson in the transfer market. In addition to picking up Fraser Murray (26) and Christian Saydee (23) for free, Lowe paid Burnley a figure of around £350,000 for Dara Costelloe (22). Lowe’s acquisition of Paul Mullin (31) and Callum Wright (25) on year-long loans suggests he will be looking for more mature players in the loan market, whose experience could prove useful in a young squad.
Since Lowe likes to play with twin strikers, he has needed to bring more in. He already signed Costelloe, Mullin and Saydee and the rumours suggest he is trying to sign Jordan Rhodes (35) who was at Blackpool last season. Were Rhodes to be signed it would be on a short-term contract. Lowe already had Maleace Asamoah (22) and Chris Sze (21) under contract.
Mullin, the most well known of the newly signed strikers, had an outstanding goalscoring record at Wrexham when they climbed up the division from the National League. However, his League 1 record of 3 goals in 9 starts and 17 appearances off the bench last season is a concern. Christian Saydee was a popular figure at Portsmouth, but his career record shows him scoring 12 goals in 60 starts and 63 substitute appearances. Dara Costelloe’s record is better, with 12 goals in 56 starts and 19 as a substitute. Asamoah has scored one goal in League 1 from 12 starts and 12 as a sub with Latics and Fleetwood. Sze has made just 4 starts with 28 appearances off the bench, scoring 2 goals since 2021.
Lowe’s hope will be that his young strikers will mature and start producing goals on a more regular basis. He will also hope that Mullin can renew his goalscoring exploits, given a change of club: a fresh start, with the full support of his manager.
With new contracts being signed by Matthew Corran, Callum McManaman, Harry McHugh, K’Marni Miller and Tom Watson, Lowe already has a first team squad of 28. The manager continues to scour the market for players who will fit in his budget and there will be more comings and goings before the transfer window ends on 1 September. There will be players currently under contract who will need to be moved to other clubs if the manager is to stay within his staffing budget.
Toby Sibbick has already joined Burton Albion and Kai Payne is to go on a season-long loan at Oldham. Lowe has made it clear that Steven Sessegnon needs to move on, although still under contract.
Lowe wasted little time in acquiring more strikers but still needs to look at specialist wing backs and perhaps more cover at centre back. But the question that concerns so many fans is whether Sam Tickle will be leaving over the summer. The young goalkeeper has been a revelation and his brilliant shot-stopping has saved his team on so many occasions. The weakness in his game is his distribution, a key area for new goalkeeping coach, Tony Warner, to work with him on should Tickle stay. Should Tickle leave he would be very hard to replace.
All football managers prefer to have all their squads complete before the first game of the new season. It will be Ryan Lowe’s preference, but the nature of the transfer market suggests that more movement will take place during the month of August.
LOS THREE AMIGOS 