2 Wigan Athletic players we are surprised didn't leave last month | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic have endured a mixed start back to life in League One, after a summer which saw a lot of off-field murmerings and uncertainty, something which has become the norm to many Latics supporters and outsiders looking in over recent years.

With 3 wins , 1 draw and 2 defeats so far, Shaun Maloney's side are doing their utmost to build early season momentum, a necessity after starting the season eight points adrift of the other 23 sides after breaching EFL regulations.

After the hectic summer, the Scotsman was able to make further movement in the transfer market, bringing in ten new faces to add both depth and quality, including the likes of Steven Sessegnon, Jonny Smith, Sean Clare, James Balazagi and Kell Watts.

On the other hand, 18 departed , with a vast amount early in the window as a result of off-field issues before the club's successful takeover by local billionare Mike Danson. This included Jack Whatmough, James McClean, Max Power and Will Keane, who has since helped propell Preston North End to the top of the Championship after five outings.

At present, the Latics have a squad size of 26, one over the maximum amount of players which can be listed to form Maloney's squad between now and the January transfer window, so here we take a look at a duo of players who are surprisingly still at the club.

Jordan Jones

The first pick comes in the form of Scottish winger Jordan Jones, who must have grown increasingly frustrated come the end of the window, as it doesn't look like he'll be in Shaun Maloney's plans for the short-term at the very least.

Jones joined Wigan in the summer of 2021 from Rangers, signing a three-year contract in the process.

He would only feature in 9 league outings as Wigan won League One on the final day of the season, with 17 appearances in all competitions. These would come in the early months of the season, as he was sent on loan to St Mirren in January 2022

Last season Jones returned to his native Scotland on a season-long loan deal with Scottish Premiership outfit and former club Kilmarnock, where he featured 22 times. Despite a bizzare turn of events which saw him return to Wigan for just five days before heading back to Rugby Park in February, Jones hasn't had much of a look in upon his return to the DW Stadium.

So far this season, he has featured in one of the Tics' League One outings, and with his contract up next year, a move in January would make sense for the 28-year-old to reignite his career.

Callum Lang

In the midst of Wigan's uncertain summer, one man who has since stuck around but was linked with a move to Championship outfit Huddersfield Town is Callum Lang.

Whilst such links never materialised into concrete interest, it is still a surprise that no clubs in the second tier looked to acquire his services, much to the delight of Wigan fans no doubt who are more than aware of his capabilities at this level.

Lang scored 15 goals in 42 League One games as Wigan won the title two seasons ago, before a frustrating season for both club and player in 22/23.