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Explained: What Wigan Athetic’s manager said about signing Everton youngster

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Wigan Athletic manager Paul Cook spoke out about the possibility of signing Antonee Robinson this summer. After Leighton Baines signed a new deal at Everton, Robinson may have to leave temporarily for the sake of first-team football as he’s behind Lucas Digne and Baines in the pecking order.

The 21-year-old spent last season on loan at Wigan and made 26 appearances in all competitions. Robinson’s long-term future at Everton could be uncertain due to him failing to make a first-team appearance for the Toffees, but Cook was coy when asked if the left-back could return to the DW Stadium.

He told Wigan Today: “I appreciate the media has a job to do, and I understand the speculation. But it’s grossly unfair on lads to be talking in public about their futures. There’s talk of us signing Jedi (Robinson), but then we don’t get him, we get another left-back.

“What I can say is we are working very hard behind the scenes to bring in good players. Players who have been here already, obviously we will know more about them than players who haven’t and would give them a head start. But does that mean we will be bringing in lads like that? Not necessarily.”

Robinson fared well with the Latics, creating 26 chances, making 32 successful dribbles (68%), winning 48 aerial duels (64%), averaging 31 passes-per-game, blocking 40 shots/passes/crosses, whipping in 100 crosses with 17% accuracy, making 88 clearances and averaging a tackle (57) or interception (34) every 26 minutes.

The USA international has featured exclusively for Everton’s u23s since his promotion from the u18s in 2015, make 27 appearances. He’s spent the last two seasons on loan at Bolton Wanderers (August 4, 2017 – May 31, 2018) and Wigan (August 3, 2018 – May 31, 2019) and looks set for a third move in 2019/20.

Read Crippy Cooke’s previous article

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Sports journalist who is an avid football fan, enjoys debunking transfer rumours, loves to write pieces about players out in the cold and takes a large amount of pride getting a predicted XI 100% correct.