Several unnamed Wigan Athletic players are set to take drastic action as the situation worsens for the club, according to Joe Bernstein of TheMailOnline.
The Latics have been nowhere near short of stories in recent times and once again members of the team find themselves waiting for wages which were due on June 2nd. Reportedly there are serious discussions amongst members of the team regarding ‘related breaches of contract’ and this could allow them to begin looking for other clubs if they were to be upheld.
Last season the club was relegated from the Championship and will play the 2023/24 football season in the third tier. And things are not looking good already for the team, with the club being deducted eight points next season for failing to deposit funds to cover their wage bill. The team also find themselves under a transfer embargo due to issues with HMRC regarding tax.
Owner Abdulrahman Al-Jasmi has put the club up for sale and released a statement last week that a deal had been agreed with an unnamed buyer. That deal was subject to EFL approval however and with no official confirmation of a deal, players are reportedly concerned about the prospect of the club heading in the same direction as Bury, who were expelled from the Football League in 2019 when owner Steve Dale was unable to provide proof of the funds to finance the club.
The club was sold in 2018 by long-time owner Dave Whelan and in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, they became the first team to enter administration, which prompted the club to sell prospects such as Joe Gelhardt. The Bahraini promised fans the glory days would return, the Latics won the FA Cup in 2013 beating Manchester City in the final, but those days seem to be even further away than before his tenure with repeated instances of missed payments to both players and staff.
Last month, Steven Caulker hit out at the ownership of the club, as he took to social media, accusing the owners of prioritising which players to pay first.
‘I might buy a football club next week. ‘Put my sponsorship all around the stadium, sign loads of players, promise the fans I am committed, and then when it comes to pay day, just pay 5 or 6 players who I think are an asset to the club.
‘Could you imagine? Again, my thoughts are with the good people of Wigan.’
The players are reportedly considering giving 14 days notice as early as this week to the club for breach of contract and beginning to search for new clubs. If they were to do so and the club wished to block them from doing so, the case would be heard by the EFL’s PRDC (player dispute-related commission).
Writer’s View
It seems to be do or die for the club right now and it seems like the situation sours more and more by the day. Relationships between owners and staff, as well as players, appear to be at an all-time low and the best course of action is to commit to selling and allowing all parties involved to move on. For players, the prospect of following in the footsteps of Bury seems to be a real concern and it is deeply disheartening that it has come to this for the players.
