Wigan Athletic manager Shaun Maloney has revealed that Jack Whatmough won’t return before the international break due to injury.
Wigan have dropped back to the foot of the table after a bright turn of form following Maloney’s arrival saw them go four games unbeaten, but they’ve now taken just one point from their previous four.
The Latics were pulled apart by runaway league leaders Burnley at the weekend, with centre-back Omar Rekik sent off in the first half to make the defeat worse. And it seems like there’s no rest bite for Maloney, with more bad news coming his way regarding fellow defender Whatmough, who missed the previous two games after suffering an injury in the warm-up before the West Brom defeat last week.
Maloney has confirmed to Wigan Today that the defender is out of action for the rest of the month, saying:
“Jack (Whatmough) won’t be back until after the international break.”
Thoughts?
It’s a blow for Wigan who will now be without Rekik and Whatmough for the visit of Coventry City tomorrow night.
The pair had previously started together just twice prior, in back three setups against Blackburn Rovers and Birmingham City which both saw Wigan pick up a point.
But Maloney will now be forced to wait longer to pair the Arsenal loanee with Whatmough again, and could likely see Wigan keep with a back four with limited options at centre-back now.
That means 19-year-old centre-back Charlie Hughes is the side’s only fit centre-back along with January arrival Steven Caulker, with Jason Kerr and Curtis Tilt both out of action as well.
Wigan host Coventry tomorrow night, with kick-off at 7:45pm.
