Wigan Athletic: Any Sam Tickle and Charlie Hughes transfer advances must be snubbed | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic must not accept transfer offers for Sam Tickle or Charlie Hughes

Wigan Athletic are gearing up for the 2024/25 League One season following a warm weather training camp in Hungary and will have their eyes on the play-off places after securing a top-half finish despite tricky circumstances last time out.

Manager Shaun Maloney has placed a heavy impetus on blooding young players through to the first team, partly due to the transfer embargo the club faced last campaign, but this is an ethos the Scot has chosen to continue, as demonstrated by his signings so far this summer.

In fact, other than 40-year-old goalkeeper Andy Lonergan, who has joined the Latics as a player-coach, Dion Rankine is the club's oldest signing this transfer window at just 21 years old.

But while Maloney and co continue to conduct transfer business of their own, the Latics must also be wary of other clubs making moves in the transfer market for the club's talented assets.

FLW takes a look at two stars who the 'Tics must retain this summer regardless of any transfer advances.

Sam Tickle

Earlier this summer, the Latics handed shot-stopper Sam Tickle a fresh contract, keeping him at the Brick Community Stadium until 2028, which will have increased the market value of the England Under-21 star.

However, this long-term deal alone is not likely to completely stave off transfer advances for the ace, who Everton have previously expressed an interest in, according to Alan Nixon.

Tickle is a class act, who the Latics must keep hold of if they want to boast serious top-six credentials last campaign, as he maintained 15 clean sheets, the sixth highest in League One last season.

He is not afraid of the big stage, and put in one of his finest performances last campaign during an FA Cup third round tie with eventual champions Manchester United, as he made 12 saves, according to FotMob.

Furthermore, if Maloney and co allowed the 22-year-old to leave the club this summer, the Latics would be left with only Lonergan and Tom Watson, who has not yet played senior professional football.

Now is simply not the time to cash in.

Charlie Hughes

Just like Tickle, Charlie Hughes is a Wigan academy graduate who has gone on to shine for the first team under Maloney's stewardship and has made his mark on the youth international stage with England.

The centre-back defends with admirable maturity for a 20-year-old, and according to FotMob, he won 32 tackles and 210 duels in League One last season.

Furthermore, Hughes is also not afraid to step up for his side in crucial moments, and scored a 90th-minute winner during a 2-1 victory over Lincoln City in April, and also scored in the 110th minute as the Latics defeated Wycombe Wanderers 1-0 back in January.

The young defender also plays a crucial role in the way in which Maloney's side play out from the back and maintained a pass accuracy of 82.9% in the league last campaign, as per FotMob.

Hughes has remarkable technical ability for a centre-half, with his FotMob statistics revealing that he completed 33 successful dribbles last season with a dribble success rate of 86.8%.

According to i News, he has caught the eye of Premier League trio Ipswich Town, West Ham and Brentford, but the Latics must not entertain any transfer advances for their key man this summer.

While these top-flight sides may be able to offer the Latics a handsome transfer fee for the centre-half whose contract at the Brick Community Stadium runs until 2028, the Greater Manchester outfit simply cannot afford to let him leave the club.

A Hughes departure would leave Maloney's men reliant upon the injury-prone Jason Kerr, as well as James Carragher, who has never made a league appearance for Wigan.