Wigan Athletic hit the jackpot with Villarreal gamble - Man Utd would bankroll the Latics for his services | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic's signing of Antonio Valencia was an excellent piece of business, which earned them a hefty cash windfall.

Wigan Athletic hit the jackpot when they signed a little-known Ecuadorian winger from Villarreal in the summer of 2006, on an initial loan deal before making it permanent two years later.

Back in the mid-to-late-2000s, Wigan were an established Premier League side, enjoying life in the top flight of English football with a hugely talented squad, with iconic names such as Emile Heskey, Leighton Baines, and Emmerson Boyce on the books.

Another player who'd just arrived in Lancashire was Valencia, an unknown Ecuadorian winger who signed on loan from Spanish side Villarreal in the summer of 2006. Little did anyone know, this would prove to be one of the club's best signings of the decade.

Valencia went on to enjoy two successful loan spells at the DW Stadium, before transferring permanently to Wigan in 2008 for a fee believed to be in the region of £5m, which would be the catalyst for his big-money move to Manchester United.

The gamble that Paul Jewell took on the youngster paid off massively, as the club reaped the rewards of the wide-man's form, and sold him on for a tidy profit after buying him permanently.

Wigan Athletic took a gamble on unknown winger Antonio Valencia

The Ecuadorian began his career in his home country for El Nacional in 2003, where he won the 2005 Clausura Tournament, which caught the attention of clubs in Spain, such as Villarreal.

Valencia joined the Yellow Submarine in the summer of 2005 after his success at the Clausura Tournament, but failed to break into the La Liga side, which saw him sent on loan to Spanish second-tier side Recreativo, who he helped guide to promotion.

The following summer, the winger was on the loan list once again, but this time opted to head to the Premier League, joining established but struggling outfit Wigan on a season-long loan.

Minutes were difficult to come by in his debut season in English football, as he played just 22 matches, scoring one goal and chipping in with one assist.

Despite this, the loan was extended for a further year by the Latics, who'd just scraped survival with a 17th-place finish. They wouldn't regret this decision as Valencia starred for the Lancashire club, playing 31 times in the Premier League with two goals and four assists to his name.

The Lago Agrio-born player had made his move to the DW Stadium permanent in January 2008 for a fee said to be around £5m, signing a three-and-a-half-year deal with the club.

He celebrated this by helping Wigan achieve a 14th-place finish in the 07/08 campaign, before the club went on to record an 11th-placed finish in the 08/09 season, the second-highest in the club's history.

Wigan's £5m punt was rewarded with £16m cash windfall

By the time the 2008-09 season had concluded, Valencia was on the radar of some of Europe's elite clubs, and even turned down the chance to join Real Madrid in January 2009.

However, just under six months later, the Ecuadorian was on the move, but he ended up just down the road from Wigan, signing for Manchester United for a reported fee of £16m.

Of course, Valencia went on to be a stalwart at Old Trafford, winning multiple Premier League titles, and eventually transitioning to right-back, which saw him become one of the most iconic players in the position in Premier League history.

As for Wigan, they reaped the rewards of their former star's form, gradually achieving higher finishes whilst Valencia was at the club, and reinvesting the fee that they received from Man Utd, eventually winning the FA Cup in 2013.

The Latics gambled by initially signing the winger on loan as an unknown prospect, and he rewarded their faith by helping the club establish its Premier League status, and developing himself into a world-class player.

This proved to be a jackpot signing for Wigan, as Valencia's contributions on the pitch and the fee they eventually got for him would help shape the club's short-term future, even after he departed.