Wigan Athletic chief addresses Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton target Sam Tickle exit fears after Preston North End 'bid'

The 22-year-old has been a revelation since being handed the No.1 shirt by Maloney on the eve of last season.

Having only made his league debut in the final game of the 2022-23 campaign against Rotherham United, Tickle was an ever-present in Latics' League One campaign last term.

He swept the board at the club's player of the year awards, and also broke into the England Under-21 set-up.

Tickle has also yet to miss a league game this term, with his 11 clean sheets the third-best tally in the division.

That's inevitably led to interest from Premier League clubs, with Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton all understood to be monitoring the situation.

Championship outfit Preston were reported to have made a cheeky offer for Tickle on Tuesday.

However, Maloney gave the situation short shrift when asked after the midweek defeat at Peterborough.

"No, we didn't receive a bid for Sam," he said. "It wasn't that official.

"And I'd be pretty certain Sam will be staying with us through this window, yeah."

Latics have been powerless to prevent two other crown jewels from the Academy - Charlie Hughes and Thelo Aasgaard - being picked off during the last two transfer windows by Hull City and Luton Town respectively.

However, they both signed their latest contracts shortly after the Mike Danson takeover in the summer of 2023, with the club's hands tied due to the previous ownership's failure to pay the wages on time, meaning release clauses - believed to be £3.5million - were inserted in the fineprint.

Tickle, however, signed a new long-term deal last summer, with no such clauses attached, meaning Maloney can be bullish about the club's position regarding any future negotiations.

"I've alluded to this in the past, but there were always some deals we didn't have a lot of control over, and the others we absolutely do," he said.

"The stark situation is that we could have lost Thelo and Charlie 18 months ago for zero, as we did other players.

"I appreciate the players understood my input at the time...that Charlie needed another year here, and with Thelo it's been 18 months.

"For them and their families, I appreciate their loyalty...and we could have lost them for nothing, let's not forget that.

"Sam is a different situation...but he's such a talent, a real talent. I'm pretty certain he won't go this window, but he's another outstanding young player that the club should be very proud of."

While powerless to prevent Latics losing at Peterborough in midweek, only the brilliance of Tickle kept the score down, as the visitors failed to muster a single effort on target.

And last weekend, Tickle helped Latics beat Bristol Rovers 2-0 – having pulled off a stupendous save at 1-0.

"I don't know how many times I've sat here and raved about him,” said Maloney. "He just has massive impacts...in a game where there wasn't a lot of momentum, from a set-play, he produced a big moment. I don't know how many times I have to say it...but if there's a big moment, or a big save that needs to be made, this guy...honestly, this is the guy I'd want to make it.”