Wigan Athletic boss 'turned down several loan bids' for starlet

The 19-year-old striker underlined his potential by scoring his first senior goal in last week's EFL Trophy victory over Leicester City Under-21s at the DW.

Having spent the second half of last season on loan at Ross County, he enjoyed a solid pre-season at Wigan, and Maloney has been delighted with his progress.

And while top scorer Charlie Wyke and club captain Josh Magennis are ahead of him in the pecking order, Stones will be given every chance by the manager to stake his own claim.

"You can see with the reserve games this season that Josh has been really effective," said Maloney.

"We had a lot of interest in him in the last couple of days in the window, from clubs in the division below and also Scotland.

"But I think it's really important that he stays with us.

"He's got a couple of really senior No.9s to learn from and fight with for a position.

"I'm pleased with him, and he's been really pushing to become a part of the senior squad - and that's the way it should be."

Also knocking on the door is fellow forward Chris Sze, who also - along with Harry McHugh - also scored against the Leicester youth.

"Chris is a fully fledged senior player now," insisted Maloney.

"He did so well against Northampton, but he's unlucky in the sense he has (Callum) Lang and (Thelo) Aasgaard ahead of him.

"They are a couple of big talents he has to push past, but he needs to grasp that opportunity when it arises and he did that last week.

"I see Harry and Josh as just below that, in an 'inbetween' stage.

"But they've been really pushing, and their performances have put a lot of pressure on me to make a decision.

"I always say what happens on the pitch will make the decision, and the Leicester game was really positive for a number of players."