“Betrayal: Wigan Boss Devastated by Player’s Move”

Wigan Athletic boss Shaun Maloney has spoken of his shock and disappointment that coach Tom Huddlestone has left the club to join Birmingham City.

The news that the former Tottenham Hotspur and Hull City midfielder will link up with Chris Davies at St Andrew’s was announced earlier this week, with Maloney saying that the update ‘came out of the blue’.

Huddlestone had only joined the Latics’ backroom staff three months ago, as he made the move to the DW Stadium from Manchester United, where he was working with the Red Devils’ under-21 side.

But now the 2013 FA Cup winners will have to find another man to fill the void as first-team coach, with the latest setback coming after Stephen Crainey left for divisional rivals Bolton Wanderers over the summer.

Wigan Athletic boss Shaun Maloney expresses Tom Huddlestone disappointment

Maloney went on to admit that he was sad to see his former Hull City teammate depart the club, with the pair working well together since Huddlestone’s arrival in June.

While the Latics boss highlighted his disappointment in losing a key member of his backroom staff to the big-spending Blues, he was keen to wish the 37-year-old well in his new role.

Maloney said via Wigan Today: “It came out of the blue really.

“I spoke to Tom on the bus going down to Bristol Rovers on Friday, and he let me know they’d approached him. I’ve known Tom a long time, and this isn’t going to change the way I feel about him, and our relationship.

“I’m really sad to see him leaving us so early, he was incredibly popular with our players and staff. But the offer he received was just impossible for us to get anywhere close to…it was miles out of our reach.

“It was an incredible offer, and he said it would have had to be, because he didn’t want to leave us. It wasn’t something he searched out, it was something that came to him.

“It’s a real feather in his cap, after being called up to work with the England Under-21s while he was with us. And it shows what a young talented coach he is, and it’s an amazing opportunity for him and his family, and I know it’s closer to where he lives.

“I remain a big fan of Tom as a guy and as a coach, and he will be missed. It was quite emotional saying goodbye, even though he’d only been here for a couple of months.

“We’ve lost a couple of members of staff like this recently, but the positive is it shows we have good people in the building. Unfortunately we’ve not been able to keep him.”

Wigan Athletic begin search for Tom Huddlestone replacement

With Huddlestone following Crainey out the building, Athletic are back to square one in terms of appointing a first-team coach, with the search for a replacement already underway.

As Maloney eluded to, the club have recruited personnel with bags of potential in recent years, but their lack of financial clout has come back to haunt them.

With the number of changes in coaching the playing staff have had to deal with in recent times, the Latics manager is keen to appoint someone who will be around for the long-haul next time, and won’t be rushing to make any decisions any time soon.

Yes, we’ve had to start that process,” he added.

“But we’re not in a hurry because I have to get it right. I have to bring in the right person, Tom was that right person, and I need to find that again.

“We just need a bit of stability now. I think we’ve felt that over the last couple of months. It’s just kind of how the window evolved, and it’s happened with the coaching staff, starting the day before we reported back.

“We crave that stability because, when we have that, you can see what this group is capable of. But I’m in no rush because I need the right person…who will stay with us for a period of time.