Wigan Athletic old-boy - on being part of the future under Phoenix 2021 Limited!

Sam Morsy admits it was ‘really nice’ to learn he’d played his part in Wigan Athletic’s successful takeover – months after leaving the DW Stadium.
Sam MorsySam Morsy
Sam Morsy

The long-serving club captain was one of the last senior players out of the door in the 'firesale' caused by administration, joining Middlesbrough at the end of last summer.

But his impact remained until March this year, when new chairman Talal Al Hammad namechecked him as being a factor in Latics first appearing on the radar of Phoenix 2021 Limited.

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“Wigan Athletic is well known in our Arab region due to the presence of popular players such as Ali Al Habsi, Mido, Amr Zaki and Sam Morsy ” revealed Al Hammad.

Which brought a smile to the face of the Egypt international – who sees only good times ahead for his former employers.

“It was really nice to hear that, definitely,” acknowledged Morsy, speaking to Wigan Today. “And hopefully when all this settles down, the plan for the future can take the club forward.

“I look to next year, and Wigan in League One would have to be favourites.

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“The aim has to be to get back to the Championship and I think they’ve shown they’re more than capable of being able to do that.

“It’s a fantastic club, fantastic town, fantastic people, and I genuinely think the fans back in the ground – who almost lost their club – will enjoy it even more.”

Morsy has also personally experienced the overseas interest in Latics, which will stand the club in good stead moving forward.

“When I went away on international duty, all the players and the staff knew all about Wigan straight away,” he said.

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“They’d seen Zaki and Mido play over here and, with the profile of being in the Premier League and winning the FA Cup, it’s still a big club.

“The new owners coming in will have raised that profile even more overseas, and that can only be good for Wigan.”

Despite his allegiances now being with Middlesbrough – whose Championship play-off bid was dashed in the home straight – Morsy has kept more than one eye on events back at Wigan over the most eventful season in the club’s history.

“To say it’s been a horrific year would be an understatement,” he recognised.

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“The club, the town, the fans have been through it...but hopefully now there’s light at the end of the tunnel and a bright future.

“And you have to say the lads at Wigan have done so well to get to the position they are now, with everything that’s happened.

“You’ve got so many young lads, players who hadn’t been playing elsewhere, players who had been injured...and it’s just all come together and it was fantastic to see.

“Hopefully with the new owners, who have a clear vision of the future, and will hopefully put some money in, there are more great times ahead.”

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As to the events of last summer – which saw Latics go from being the form team of the Championship, having secured their second-tier status for a third campaign, to being thrown into League One, and stripped of pretty much all of their on-field and off-field assets – Morsy is still no clearer towards understanding exactly what happened, and why.

“We’ll never know why the previous owners tried to liquidise the club, it doesn’t make any sense whatsoever,” he added.

“And you look at what’s happened this year, the teams up there, ‘our’ players who have done so well at other clubs...it’s heartbreaking.

“We had everything you could want in that team and that squad...

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“But that’s football isn’t it...you never know what’s around the corner.

“It’s all a bit into the unknown now, but the possibilities are endless.

“The first step was to stay in League One, so that’s been accomplished...and then who knows...?”

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