Wigan Athletic had lined up a last minute raid for West Brom winger Jonathan Leko on transfer deadline day before a potential injury and wage demands scuppered any chance of a switch, according to a behind-the-scenes report from Wigan Today.
The newspaper’s Paul Kendrick spent the final day of the January window at the Latics’ training ground for an inside view on what was going on and revealed that the north west side were keen on a late move for Leko, who has been very much on the fringes of the first team at the Hawthorns.
However, time restraints, fitness worries and issues over his wages are said to have been why a move was not pulled off before the window slammed shut, the Latics losing Will Grigg to Sunderland instead.
Opinion
Leko has not been playing much at all under Darren Moore at West Brom, with just one Championship outing and a couple of starts in the FA Cup and League Cup, and so it is easy to see why Wigan thought a deal might be possible. The problem for the Latics is that the young winger could well be on wages reflective of a hot prospect at a Premier League side, the Baggies having been relegated last season, and that sort of money is likely to be beyond most Championship sides in the bottom half of the table. It would have been a good move for the versatile wide man, who would no doubt like to be playing more regular first team football than he is at the Hawthorns, but instead he is stuck trying to force his way into Moore’s plans. With the Baggies chasing promotion it is unlikely the manager is going to give Leko the chance to shine in the senior side any time soon and perhaps a loan exit would have been beneficial for both club and player.