Ryan Lowe issues clear transfer demand to Wigan Athletic owner Mike Danson ahead of January | OneFootball

The Latics boss is looking to strengthen his squad in several areas

Wigan Athletic head coach Ryan Lowe has issued a clear message to owner Mike Danson that three specific areas of his squad at the Brick Community Stadium are in a clear need of reinforcements ahead of the upcoming January transfer window.

This came after the Latics succumbed to a 2-0 home defeat against Blackpool in the final League One outing before Christmas Day over the course of the weekend, courtesy of second-half strikes from Ashley Fletcher and Dale Taylor, with both players coming back to haunt their former side.

It has been an inconsistent first half of the campaign for Lowe and his side in what is his first full season in charge of the club, having initially been handed a three-and-a-half year contract by Danson back in mid-March.

At present, Wigan find themselves 14th in League One, having taken 26 points from their opening 20 league fixtures in the lead-up to one of the most congested periods of the EFL fixture schedule across the regular 46-game campaign.

Congested is very much an appropriate manner to sum up the current landscape of the divisional standings too, as results over the weekend mean that the North West side are not one million miles away from mounting a perhaps unexpected play-off bid if their form was to improve in the second half of the season, albeit they are also just three points ahead of Mansfield Town, who occupy the final spot within the third tier's relegation zone at present.

Wigan's recent pedigree of winning the League One title three times within the past 10 years is somewhat counting for nothing, as they, like many other sides in the aforementioned region of the table, have struggled for consistency and, as a result, a regular goal threat.

As such, it doesn't perhaps come with any great deal of surprise that Lowe has explained his desire to see a new striker to come through the door, as well as further depth and quality across other departments.

As previously mentioned, inconsistency has been the clear buzzword associated with the Latics' first four-and-a-half months of the season, having won and lost six games, whilst drawing a further eight.

Lowe was the subject of previously strong criticism from sections of the support at the Brick Community Stadium heading into the Autumn, before Saturday's frustrating defeat to the Tangerines represented a first defeat in League One since October 11th against Wycombe Wanderers.

Goalscoring was a clear issue for Lowe and his predecessor, Shaun Maloney, last term, as the side were only able to find the back of the net 40 times across 46 games, and they have only scored 22 times across the opening 20 league outings during the Liverpudlian's first full campaign in charge thus far, a number which Lowe will hope to see a marked improvement on in the coming weeks and months based on underlying figures.

After Saturday's loss to Ian Evatt's side, the former Preston North End boss outlined his stance on any upcoming transfer plans to local publication, Wigan Today.

"Yes, we need more quality, we need more resources, the lads need some help, I need some help," Lowe stated.

"You can all see what we're trying to do here, it's evident...and all through the team, the metrics are good.

"We need a goalscorer, first and foremost, we need another creative player, who is going to put chances on a plate for someone, and maybe a maverick who can do something out of nothing," Lowe added.

"I am trying to do that...and it's pointless shouting at me, or shouting at the lads, because we're all trying. We just need a little bit of help and a little bit more quality in and around the team.

"We just haven't had that quality in front of goal, and someone needs to stand up and be counted for. That's our Achilles heel at the moment.

"We know we need to be better in certain moments, but I can't do any more, we can't do any more. The players have to take responsibility in those areas and convert the chances," said the Latics boss.

For some time now, Wigan have developed a reputation for being an extremely difficult side to beat and score a handful of goals against. However, this has clearly come at a cost on the creative front.

Lowe looked to address his previous shortcomings with the additions of Christian Saydee and Wrexham loanee, Paul Mullin in the summer. Whilst the veteran striker is currently the club's joint-top scorer alongside fellow summer recruit, Fraser Murray, the fact that both have only scored four times is particularly alarming.

Therefore, it is no surprise that further depth and quality in the centre-forward department is a must, as well as a high calibre of player who is capable of linking midfield and attack at quick speed.