Wigan Athletic key man wants to stay for rebuild

Firstly so the club can begin planning for the rebuild, and secondly so he – and the rest of the numerous players out of contract this summer – can secure their own futures!

In-form Keane will be one of the first names on Leam Richardson’s wish-list for next term, and the ex-Manchester United junior would is very open to remaining a ‘Tic.

“I’d love to stay, I’ve really enjoyed myself this season,” he said. “There’s obviously a lot of lads out of contract this summer, but hopefully we’ll be able to keep hold of them.

“It’s just great to see the club going in the right direction after a tough time. The owners have shown the ambition they have for the club, and hopefully that will lead to some stability.”

Keane admits there’s been little time to look too far ahead given the gruelling schedule, but he is hoping to sit down soon with the new owners for a chat very soon.

“There’s been so many games in such a short space of time, obviously so much of the focus has been on that,” he added. “But hopefully we can sit down in the next couple of weeks and have discussions about the future.

“The owners will want to be looking at who’ll be staying and who won’t be, so they can start to plan for next season.

“If we can secure our future in League One, it gives the club a good base from which to build this summer.

“And obviously for the lads in that position of not having anything lined up next season, it’s a great incentive to make sure we keep playing well for the last three games.

“If we can stay up, that would give the club the best chance to be able to offer that security, knowing there might be contracts up for grabs for next season.”

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