Wigan Athletic: Ipswich Town development shows Leam Richardson's biggest error: View | OneFootball

Ipswich Town star Nathan Broadhead has played a key role in the Tractor Boys' unfathomable feat of back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League.

The Wales international signed for the Suffolk outfit in January 2023, and scored eight goals as well as providing five assists as Kieran McKenna's men gained promotion from League One to the Championship.

Broadhead was once again a vital cog in the Tractor Boys' promotion winning machine as he was the side's joint top scorer alongside Conor Chaplin with 13 goals as McKenna and co sealed automatic promotion to the Premier League.

Prior to his transfer from Everton to Ipswich, Broadhead spent the first half of the 2022/23 campaign at Wigan Athletic, then of the Championship, where he struggled for game-time, especially under former Latics boss Leam Richardson.

Tractor Boys success highlights major Richardson error

During his time at the DW Stadium, now known as the Brick Community Stadium, Broadhead made 22 appearances in the second tier, but was named in the Latics' starting XI on just 11 occasions.

Despite his short amount of playing time, the former Toffees attacker showcased his ability in Wigan colours, and scored on five occasions, including a late winner as the Latics defeated Birmingham City 1-0 at St Andrew's back in August 2022 in unlikely circumstances, after Joe Bennett was shown the red card.

Since joining the Tractor Boys, Broadhead has been absolutely electric, and has proven what he can do when he is afforded regular starting opportunities.

If Richardson, who was sacked by the Latics in November 2022 following a poor run of form, had placed the same faith in Broadhead as McKenna has, then his Wigan side might have been a stronger outfit.

The decision to play Broadhead more regularly could have even saved the manager his job if the Wales international had been able to perform like he has for the Tractor Boys during his time in Greater Manchester.

Richardson performed miracles during his time with the Latics, steering the team to League One survival in 2021 despite the fact that the club was in administration for the majority of the 2020/21 season, before guiding the club to the third tier title in 2022.

But his time in Greater Manchester ended on a sour note as the side were struggling in the Championship, while the decision not to give Broadhead as much game-time as the forward would have liked was the manager's biggest error in hindsight.

Richardson opened the door for Broadhead exit

When Broadhead joined the Latics from the Toffees, he signed on a season-long loan deal, but the lack of game-time he received under Richardson led to the Premier League club cutting his tenure in the Championship short.

Once Richardson's successor, Kolo Toure, was appointed, the forward was named in the Latics' starting 11 for three consecutive games in December 2022, and scored in a 2-1 defeat to Sheffield United on 19th December 2022.

But a late flurry of starts under Toure was not enough to convince the Toffees to keep Broadhead on loan at Latics, and the Wales international was recalled by his then parent club on 6th January 2023.

The fact that the Merseyside outfit recalled Broadhead, and sold him to the Tractor Boys just three days later will have left Latics fans with a sour taste in the mouth. He has gone on to excel under McKenna and that will only add to that.

Had Richardson handed the attacker more first team opportunities, he might have stayed at Latics for the duration of the 2022/23 campaign, and his Tractor Boys move may never have happened at the time it did. Of course, money talks, but so many circumstances would have changed if he had stayed on loan with Wigan.

Broadhead has the opportunity to prove himself at the top level in 2024/25

The 26-year-old has shown that he has a clinical eye for goal in both League One and the Championship, but the 2024/25 campaign offers him the opportunity to prove that he can score goals in the Premier League, after being sold by the Toffees in 2023.

Next season will be a very different proposition for a Tractor Boys side who have won 194 points over the last two seasons, but if the likes of Broadhead and Chaplin are able to continue producing the goods in front of goal, then staying in the Premier League could be an achievable feat.

If Broadhead is successful in the Premier League, Richardson may look back on his decision to consistently leave the forward out of his Latics starting 11 with even more regret.