Wigan Athletic should raid League One rivals after gutting Shaun Maloney reveal | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic should opt to sign Crawley Town's Jeremy Kelly following a host of midfield injuries

Wigan Athletic have struggled for consistency in League One, after playing exactly half of their third-tier fixtures this campaign, which is perhaps best reflected by the fact that they are just seven points clear of the relegation zone while also being a mere five points shy of the top half.

Despite their struggles at times, the Latics play an attractive brand of football, thanks to the possession-based ethos instilled by manager Shaun Maloney.

Midfield metronomes in the Wigan squad, such as former Arsenal man Matt Smith, therefore hold the key to Maloney's playing style, but the boss has recently revealed the extent of the injuries that have plagued his squad in that area of the pitch.

The 41-year-old told Latics TV: "Baba Adeeko is going to be (out for) six to eight weeks, so we are hoping we will have him back just before March, possibly the first week of March.

"Matt (Smith) was a similar sort of action, but his injury was a bit more severe.

"He had surgery this morning (Saturday), so he will be around 16 weeks from now, so I think it will be a massive positive if we see him before the end of the season, but I am not sure how likely that is."

The Wigan boss was asked by Latics TV if the injuries suffered by Smith, Adeeko, and Francois meant he was now looking for reinforcements in the January transfer window.

He said: "I think we have to.

"Tyrese (Francois) as well will be out for a period of time, longer than Baba's timeline.

"We didn't plan to, but we are going to have to, and we might have to make some hard decisions with the squad, and we probably need to give Kai Payne more time to develop.

"To rely on him for the next four months is unfair, so we will probably have to look at the midfield position now."

As the Latics look to bolster their midfield now, one player they should turn their attention to is Crawley's Jeremy Kelly, who is a shining light in an otherwise struggling team.

In many ways, Kelly is a similar player to the Latics' injured star Smith, as he boasts an impressive pass accuracy of 83.4% in League One, as per FotMob.

Therefore, should Maloney and co opt to sign Kelly, it would soften the blow of losing Smith's high-quality ball retention, while the Red Devils man is also a tenacious player, who has won 82 duels in the third tier this term, according to FotMob.

Such a presence of strength in the Latics midfield could also help plug the gap currently left behind by Adeeko's injury setback, while he has also created a whopping 36 chances, which could majorly help Maloney's side, who are currently struggling for goals.

Kelly could be keen on a move away from Crawley

The Red Devils currently sit in the League One relegation zone and are five points adrift of safety, following a five-game winless run, which has included four losses.

While Kelly only joined the West Sussex outfit last February and helped them win promotion from League Two via the play-offs, he has arguably proven that he is too good to ply his trade for a third-tier outfit who have serious relegation worries.

A move to the Latics could help ensure that the American will be playing League One football next season, something which his positive performances merit.

While losing Kelly would come as a major dent to the Red Devils' survival efforts, a transfer to the Brick Community Stadium could be an ideal scenario for both the 27-year-old and the Latics.