Ben Amos dodged injury bullet - Wigan Athletic boss

The 32-year-old goalkeeper pulled up lame in the 1-1 home draw against Bristol City on August 13, having been an ever-present in the league since arriving in the summer of 2021.

However, after missing only last weekend's victory at Birmingham, he returned to the bench for Saturday's home defeat to Burnley.

And his manager has lifted the lid on the freak injury that cut him down - and to his huge relief it wasn't as bad as first feared.

"It's great to have him back, because it could have been an awful lot longer," said Richardson.

"We initially thought it was a ruptured Achilles tendon, but thankfully it was just a ligament in his foot that not everyone's got, and which is not that useful.

"It was obviously painful for a short time, but it's okay now.

"We just thought with Jamie (Jones) having done so well last week, there's a real competitiveness between them, respectful, and they'll continue to share the load."

The defeat to Burnley ended Latics’ unbeaten start to the campaign, but Richardson’s glass remains very much half-full.

"These are the challenges, but we'd much sooner be challenging this than what we did last year,” he added.

"As a football club, we just need to make sure we're as equipped as we can to meet these challenges.

"We've always reacted well, and we've always come together in adversity.

"Nine times out of 10, we get things right, and that won't change."