Will Keane starts: The strongest Wigan Athletic XI Richardson can field as Preston clash looms | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic and Leam Richardson will be desperate to get going in the Championship again, having spent time in League One over the last few seasons.

The club were on the bring of extinction too at one point, having been plunged into administration and relegated to League One.

With the Latics struggling off the field, they very nearly fell all the way to the fourth tier too. However, in stepped new owners to save the club and under the stewardship of Leam Richardson, they ended up keeping themselves in the third tier instead.

With investment and the right leadership, they then soared and sealed the League One title and a spot back in the Championship. They’ve yet to make more signings this summer but they’ll now be ready to get going again and see how they can fare in their first game back against Preston.

Who could lineup for Wigan then in that opening clash against the Lilywhites?

Wigan haven’t signed a new player yet minus youngster Matt Wonnacott from Torquay. He’s unlikely to get the nod in goal over Ben Amos and that means he may have to settle for a spot on the bench, if he is even in the squad for this game.

In defence, Curtis Tilt couldn’t feature at the back end of the last campaign due to injury but could feature here if he is fit enough. Alongside him, the Latics often used Jack Whatmough last season and they’ll certainly be using him plenty of times again a division higher and Jason Kerr should round out the backline with Kelland Watts now back at Newcastle. In front of them, Tom Naylor features too.

Quiz: Can you identify the 10 fake Wigan Athletic facts?

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The club's nickname is the Ticks

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In midfield, the club have been delighted with the form of James McClean since his move to the DW Stadium. He was their third highest scorer in League One last time around despite being a winger, with nine goals and his time spent in the Championship previously means the player should be a definite starter. Max Power has also played at this level before, as has Tendayi Darikwa so they should all get starts in this clash.

The strikeforce for Wigan hasn’t been bolstered as of yet but that might not be a worry. They should play Will Keane, who was the top goalscorer for the club last season with a superb return of 26 goals in 44 games. He wasn’t as prolific in the second tier last time he played there but he might now finally be hitting his peak and could be solid for them upfront. Alongside him, youngster Callum Lang has impressed for the Latics recently and deserves his chance in the Championship.