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Found this article on a site called “The Deck”…….Tried to copy the link without success so copied it……I belits bang on the money…………………..”..Wigan’s decision to move on from Ryan Lowe after that 6-1 humiliation at Peterborough was brutal, but it was also inevitable.
Sitting 22nd in League One and sliding towards the trapdoor focuses the mind fast, because relegation is not an abstract fear for a club of Wigan’s size. It is a very real threat to budgets, recruitment, attendances and any sense of momentum.
That is why the language coming out of the club in the days since has been so telling. The board wants a “swift appointment” and, crucially, a head coach who “gets” Wigan. That might sound like common sense, but it can also be a trap. “Gets us” can easily become a substitute for due diligence, or a sentimental shortcut when pressure is high.
The point is not that Wigan’s identity is irrelevant. It is that identity is not a tactical system, not a training schedule, and not a recruitment plan. It is what gets talked about when clubs are unsure what the actual plan is.
Why the “DNA” messaging is risky
Clubs reach for the language of identity when they want unity and patience, and both matter, particularly in a relegation fight. But it becomes dangerous when it turns into a hiring criterion more important than competence. Wigan have been through enough turbulence over the last decade to know how quickly “the right fit” becomes “the wrong appointment”.
The job now is not to appoint a storyteller. It is to appoint a head coach who can tighten a team that has been leaking goals, steady a group short on confidence, and get results quickly without turning every match into a survival horror show. If that coach also understands the club’s culture, brilliant, but the culture cannot be the main event.
That is where Gary Caldwell comes into focus, because the identity angle is not being used to disguise a lack of footballing logic. It is being used to sell a candidate who, on paper, fits both the emotional and practical needs of the moment.
Caldwell is not just nostalgia
Caldwell’s Wigan connection is obvious. He captained the club, was part of the FA Cup-winning side in 2013, and later returned as a coach and then the manager. That history matters because it buys him instant credibility in a situation where the next appointment will be judged brutally from day one.
But the stronger argument is what Caldwell has done at Exeter City. Working within clear constraints, he has kept a club with a smaller budget in the division and built a reputation for organised, coached football rather than chaos-by-instinct. Exeter appointed him in October 2022, and the job has been a lesson in operating without the luxury of constant fixes, because Exeter’s model demands development, coherence and value.
That is exactly the environment Wigan should want to build, even if the immediate priority is survival. The club can talk about “DNA” all it likes, but the real identity of a modern EFL club is the ability to recruit smartly, coach consistently and avoid panic. Caldwell has lived that reality in Devon.
The elephant in the room: Caldwell’s previous Wigan spell
There is, of course, a reason some supporters will hesitate. Caldwell has done the Wigan job before, and it ended with relegation and then, later, his dismissal with the club struggling in the Championship. It is fair to bring that up, because football does not hand out blank cheques for warm feelings.
But context matters. Caldwell walked into a mess during his first spell, and while the ending was ugly, he did deliver a League One title and an immediate promotion. That experience is not a warning sign, it is relevant evidence. It proves he can handle the Championship to League One transition, manage pressure, and build a promotion campaign over a full season.
More importantly, Caldwell is not the same coach now. Managers evolve, and Caldwell has had time to recalibrate, work in different environments, and return to senior management with a clearer idea of what he wants. Exeter has not been perfect, but it has been instructive, and that matters more than what he was a decade ago.
If it is Caldwell, Wigan must back it up with a real plan
Even if Caldwell is the right appointment, Wigan still risk repeating the same mistake if the club believes the hire itself is the plan. A “swift appointment” only helps if the club then behaves like it has learned something.
That means a clear definition of style that is reflected in recruitment, not rewritten every time a result goes bad. It means a commitment to coaching and performance, not just names on a shortlist. It also means avoiding the classic relegation spiral habit of lurching from one short-term fix to the next, because that is how clubs fall through divisions they never expected to visit.
Wigan’s board statement talks about connection, and connection matters, but connection is a consequence of competence. Win matches, defend properly, stop conceding soft goals, and the connection will take care of itself. Get seduced by narrative over detail, and no amount of “DNA” will save the season.
The verdict
Wigan should appoint Gary Caldwell if he is attainable, because he offers the rare combination of credibility at the club and evidence of functioning in a constrained, modern EFL model. That is not romantic; it is practical.
But the bigger point is this: Wigan have to stop outsourcing their future to the next appointment. Caldwell can be the right head coach, yet still fail if the club does not build the structure around him.
The Latics are not crying out for someone who “gets” them. They are crying out for a club that finally gets itself.
Caldwell does not represent the Latics DNA. His football will be a replica of the Maloneyball bilge that bores the shit out of many of us.
He may ‘get’ our club but his football philosophy of passing out from the back, passing and possession football, tippy tappy, backwards and sideways rubbish is not needed and not wanted.
We need someone who understands our DNA of wingers, strikers, getting the ball forward with urgency, getting the ball in the box and playing with pace. Caldwell or anyone else who do not meet that criteria should not be considered.
FORWARD not backwards please Latics or whoever is running our shit show at the moment.
Caldwell plays a 3 at the back
We don’t have wingbacks which was Lowe’s downfall.
Whenever a new manager arrives at a club he instills his philosophy on how the game should be played.
The windows closed so let’s say it’s Caldwell who comes in. He plays 3 at the back
What will change ?, we don’t have wingbacks
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
I’ve said it over and over again, it all stems back to the recruitment process. Yes the club won’t always get it right granted but how many times do we get it wrong that’s the issue.
In the 13 years since leaving the Prem the amount of players that have been through this club is truly mindboggling.
How many youth have gone on to play for us and how many have sold on for a big slab of dosh?.
And if they have how much was the manager given from the sale to *improve* the squad ??.
And your answers there on a postcard for every Latics fan to digest. We had at one point 9 signed players out on loan and 5 loans. We played 5 loanees at Peterborough so the recruitment has failed on two accounts signed players and loaned players.
You could get Mourinho and Pep as his assistant but without the correct recruitment, financial backing from owner to manager and lots of young lads from the academy coming through to make some cashflow *self sufficient* will never be achievable, period
For me it stems from the top down like a Christmas tree but all the pines have fell of ours, it’s threadbare.
I’ll take Caldwell over the other names in the list. Id consider Rowett, but I think he will be looking for a higher job.
If there were some better Candidates to enter the fray, then Caldwell would slip down my pecking order. I like the thought of Perkins coming back with him, but last time he was manager, I wasn’t keen…from what I can remember, and I think even though he won league one, the first half of the season we were shocking and he was lucky we turned it on in the second half of that season, when Yanic Wildshut came and ripped teams apart.
The fact he likes a back 3 concerns me. Our defence looks all over the place and I think that we need to shore it up with a flat back 4.
I am a bit surprise we don’t seem to be looking at a caretaker manager, someone like Steve Bruce, to see us through to the seasons end, hopefully keep us up, and give us a basis to start again from in the summer with a permanent appointment. I think we would also have a few more potential managers interested of they knew League One was guaranteed next season. That would be my worry now, if I was Hourihane and other potential managers like that. Who wants a relegation on their CV? Come the summer if are still League One, I can almost guaranteed a few more interested parties.
Then again, to bring someone in now, whatever happens with us this season, theres going to have to be so much recruitment work done, and if that work can start now, its probably for the best. For a new manager to come in, in say…June, it would be a massive task to recruit 15 players…at least…in about 8 weeks. And to get them together as a team/squad is something else entirely. But we know, as a club we know its coming. So things have to start being put into place now. Ive never met our head of recruitment, Joe Riley, but I would love to have a chat with him. And that not me being arsed, I would genuinely like to know what’s going on and his thoughts towards the inevitable recruitment that is necessary. It should be probably the busiest summer recruitment we’ve ever had. And we can’t hang about.
Agree with some of the posted points …..as ive stated my preference would be Leighton Baines with a Mowbray,Bruce,Mccarthy etc to help him till end of season. The article spot on as far as our club ownership realising a proper structure needs to be built around whoever we appoint…..which for me me means a coaching and advisory clear out. The owner needs to invest in this framework. Our recruitment is a shambles. On purchasing the club we were told that investment in the academy to produce some of our own which hopefully in turn would provide a future sales conveyor belt and potentially go some way to financing the club. Actually the opposite has happened…..continually loaned players who we develop for donor club leaving us with another recruitment chasm. The buck stops at the owner…..needs to back the next manager not just with one or two quality signings but invest in a director of football and recruitment(J Jackson comes to mind) staff….including our scouting network . Otherwise whoever we get will just be jumping or falling off our managerial merry-go-round this time in 12 months.
I will probably look a fool when he is unveiled later, but….
On our way home last night, I saw an interview with Aitcheson of Exeter. He was saying that as far as he knows, he and the rest of the Exeter players are expecting Caldwell to be in and prepping them for their game on Tuesday night. Does this mean its not as cut and dried as we think? Are we in for a shock when Will Still is announced? A manager that will cost no compo fee.
The penny pinching would not surprise me at all. I hope I am wrong. But if GC is coming in, I hope he is fully aware of the task in hand. Because at this moment in time, I can just see us free falling into League 2.
Caldwell it is and tbh he’s about the best available.
He got thrown to the lions first time round. He was far too young but he got us promoted.
I heard some saying, “Oh no not him, no thanks”, utter clueless bellend I say.
My only fear is, Caldwell likes to play his preferred way with the 3 at the back. The problem with that is, we don’t have the calibre of player to play with wingbacks.
Hope he can kick us clear of the drop zone starting Sunday and save from any last day shitty pants shoot outs.
I don’t think my ticker could take that like Sheff Utd or Stoke final dayers
I just hope the new management team don’t raise their voices to the players or ask them to put more effort in, the prima donnas will be downing tools again and go in to a mega strop.
Fuck the EFL
Cant believe some delusional buffoons seem to believe we would have top championship managers queuing up to take over. Rowett,Still,Sheeran etc…no matter what pay on offer…..really???…Relegation threatened, no transfer windows to rectify our failings and a loanee swollen squad. Caldwell is a good fit for us in this Lowe created situation. Only young when he last managed us…..listen to what the major Exeter fans say about him. Threw himself into everything connected with their club and the community. His passion for Wigan Athletic is not in question……bringing Perkins as well is a bonus. 16 games and certainly no easy task…..a free hit . The damage had already been done ……but definitely not irreparable. Come on Wednesday.
Well, I am actually feeling really pleased that Gary has come back.
Even more so that David Perkins has come back as well. Its given me a feel good factor, and Ive not had that for a while. I’m probably going to miss the game in Wednesday as Ive come back from Arsenal absolutely full of a cold.
Speaking of Arsenal, I am one who can appreciate the absolute gap in class from our team to theirs. Sadly, I had to try and explain it all to some of our clowns. Bloody day trippers who haven’t got a clue about football. Getting angry and calling our players rotten. Fact is, their players could drop a football into a barrell from 40 or 50 yards away. Our players would have a go, but probably land about 10 o 20 feet either side. Thats the difference! It comes so easy. That line up they had was basically the one they won 3-1 away at Inter Milan a few weeks back. We could’ve done a lot worse. They were…they are, class. We move on now with 16 cup finals coming up.
Gary is limited to the players we have now. Thats the only down side. We are very limited and hes going to actually have to play players who, all being well, he wouldn’t play. He will have no choice. We will also have Wright, Moxon and Taylor missing the games against their parent clubs.
Gary Caldwell was the best option for us. I didnt fancy any of the others on the list. It says it all with how Gary has left Exeter as well. Going with their best wishes, its amicable on all sides, which is very rare. He left a farewell video in which you could hear his voice breaking. There’s no animosity on either side. I wish them well apart from when they visit us next month.
We might just get something like our old club back.
Small steps but the desire and fight last night was a huge improvement. Under Lowe that would have been another no show. Taylor looks like he always has a goal in him given the service Costelloe provided. Thought Saydee did well with some of the WWF type manhandling he endured. Murray looked a different animal too. All in all very happy with the night…more importantly 3pts on the board and on to Stockport now……a difficult game. On this note I have 2 tickets 1 Adult and 1 under 18 as due to family circumstances I cant make it. Anyone interested let me know……private message if you can explain how I do it.
The main thing for me was, seeing Caldwell giving out clear instructions throughout the game along with Perkins rather than being sat on the bench, snood up.
At this stage it’s all about man management. The overall style of play/set up was near identical Lowe’s but in the few days Caldwell’s been here you can see the players are buying into it and the intensity was up 6 fold.
When Taylor left the field he made a point of getting Caldwell’s attention to give him a huge. Small things like this show they’ve took a liking to him but this would not have happened under Lowe Taylor would have simply waltzed past Lowe and took a seat, no pat on the back or kiss me arse. Good man mangers know this that it’s a combination of the finer details that bring a team together.
Saydee did well the difference was he was trying to lay it off quicker but I think the foot stamp he received put paid to his night.
One thing that annoys me is, the criticism Weir receives its beyond belief. Weirs game is for me, what he does when we’re out of possession.
Because he’s not putting in 40 diag balls (did do one though) and linking up play or mind bending runs he’s constantly slagged off
What people forget is, he’s constantly moving, little jogs between players, putting pressure on the opposition were as some other players grab a that few second breather he rarely does.
He does a lot of the unsung donkey mule work that gets little praise by fans but it’s a vital part of the cog. A few fans should cut the lad some slack because when he’s not there it’s noticeable.
Matt Smith came off the bench and within a minute put a beauty of a ball through. He slotted into a more advanced role plus a superb tackle on the half way line shows he’s up for it especially after a couple of poor performances.
Caldwell comes across as a very likeable guy, very honest and someone who the players will find very hard to dislike.
I keep saying it, at this level it’s all about man management and bringing a team and it’s spirit together. We don’t have the calibre of player who can turn games, our wins have to come from our players trusting and believing in each and Weds it showed.
If we can avoid the drop there might be one or two of our players who are here on a loan or their contracts end Kerr M.Smith etc who might just think:-
“Hang on a sec, I can feel something happening here, I wanna be a part of this”
The exact opposite thought they might have had only few weeks ago under Calamity Lowe.
For all you dreamers out there here’s one for you:-
If we were to win our 2 games in hand we’d be 9 points behind Huddersfield in 6th in the final play-off spot and 4 points Peterborough in 11th
Dream or Believe ?
The Luton game proves one thing, the players have been taking the piss for weeks in that time we have slipped into the relegation zone.
They should take the Lions share of the blame if we go down, the 45 minutes we played well last night means naff all if we fuck the next few games up, the players have a lot of making up to do to the supporters.
Fuck the EFL
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