Wigan Athletic boss on Max Power 'reincarnation'

Leam Richardson says he’s not surprised in the slightest by Max Power’s flying start to the campaign – out of position!
Max PowerMax Power
Max Power

Power returned to the DW over the summer after three years at Sunderland.

But having played his entire career in the engine room, Power has been a revelation in the Latics rebuild in the right-back berth, topping the league for assists as well as grabbing his first goal of the season at Gillingham on Saturday.

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And Richardson says his switch of position has not come about by chance.

“I’ll take full credit for Max!” the Latics boss smiled. “But seriously it was in my thinking when we signed him.

“We spoke long and hard about Max, and we all know he can play as a ‘6’ or as an ‘8’, as well as wide areas. He’s one of those versatile players, and I think in the modern game, you need players like that.

“You look at Tom Naylor, who can play just as well at centre-half, you look at Tandayi Darikwa, who does a great job in both full-back positions.

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“Players these days have to be able to switch, and they have to be able to take in information during a game.

"As Max matures as a footballer and a person, he understands his role within the side and what might be required of him.”

Latics signed off for the international break on top of League One, with a game in hand over all their early rivals apart from Sunderland and Wycombe.

Richardson, though, says the table is yet to fully take shape.

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“I think everyone starts to look at the table when you’ve played a quarter of the games, maybe 15,” he added.

“And you can then start to reflect on the last couple of months, the squad you’ve built and where it’s taking you.

“We’re still learning a lot about ourselves – the balance of the squad, and the players within it.

"But in years gone by, it’s usually around that 15-game mark where you start to see what’s what, and then 20, and then so on.

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“Before then, it’s about being comfortable in your own skin, and attacking what you can control at your own club.

“All we can do is concentrate on ourselves, which we’ve been doing since the start of pre-season.

"What we’ve tried to do is build a winning culture, which we’re still very much in the infancy of, with some lads, in terms of knowing what I want.”

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