League One boss tackles Hull City’s £4.5m transfer bid for star defender

Wigan Athletic are preparing for life without Charlie Hughes as the League One club consider Hull City’s transfer bid for the defender. It emerged earlier this week that the Tigers are working on a deal to sign the England Under-20 international and have tabled a bid of around £4.5m for Hughes.

City have identified Hughes, who made 43 League One appearances last season, scoring four goals and assisting once as Athletic finished 12th in the table, as a potential long-term replacement for Jacob Greaves. Latics boss Shaun Maloney confirmed the issue had gone “upstairs”.

“I think when it gets to that stage it’s with the board … Ben, Mike Danson, Lucas Danson and Gregor will make those decisions,” Maloney told Wigan Today. “Generally, I will stay on the football side with Charlie and our relationship can stay as it is. Everything else will go to the board level, which they should…they will ask my opinion, which of course. I will give when asked.

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“But the board have been really good, going back to last summer when they were incredibly good, and they’ve been excellent this year and they’ll do well now.”

Hughes could be involved in Athletic’s pre-season friendly with Blackburn Rovers at the Brick Community Stadium today, according to Maloney. But is Maloney resigned to losing Hughes this summer?

He said: “I have to prepare for both scenarios, so let’s wait and see which way it goes. What I will say is that Charlie has been brilliant, he has continued to train, play and be outstanding at Fylde. He is one of us. captains and he behaves as well as you would expect.”

Wigan-born Hughes joined his hometown club in 2017 but has particularly flourished under Maloney. The Latics boss says he is not surprised by the interest in his signature following his rapid development.

He said: “Charlie in the last 18 months… I remember coming here on the back of some very difficult results and performances, a couple of 4-1s… but I think it was the second game he came in and he didn’t never been back and watching how he’s progressed… he’s now an England Under-20 international… and captained our side on more than a dozen occasions last season.

“I think the interest in him is to be expected, but now we’ll see where he goes.”