Wigan Athletic chief delivers 'outstanding' Ryan Trevitt verdict with patient approach explained
Gary Caldwell has delivered his verdict on Ryan Trevitt’s permanent return to Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic boss Gary Caldwell believes Ryan Trevitt can become a key player for the club after completing a permanent return from Brentford this summer.
The 23-year-old has signed a two-year deal at the Brick Community Stadium after leaving the Premier League side, becoming Latics’ eighth signing of the summer transfer window.
Trevitt spent last season on loan with Wigan, making 14 appearances in what was a frustrating campaign on the injury front for the midfielder.
It marks the third time Caldwell has signed Trevitt, having also brought him to Exeter City during his previous spell in charge there.
“It’s the third time I’ve signed him,” Caldwell smiled. “I’ve told him it’s third time lucky because every other time he’s picked up a niggle injury!
“Ryan Trevitt is an outstanding football player. I think anyone who’s seen him play when he’s at his fittest, which was my first full season at Exeter, he was outstanding.
“When he came back after four or five games, he got fit. I remember the night he got injured at Barnsley, he scored, and he was the best player on the park by a mile.
“I think whenever he played for Wigan in the early season, they won games and he was outstanding, so we know what we’ve got.”
The Latics boss admitted the club will need to carefully manage Trevitt’s fitness after a series of injury setbacks, but is confident he will make a big impact once fully up to speed.
“We also know that we need to look after him, we need to take care of him, and we need to get him to a physical level that he’s capable of playing week in, week out, and that will take time,” Caldwell added.
“I think we all have to be patient with that, but he’s a brilliant signing, and we know with the staff we have that we can get him up to that speed.
“Like I said, not in the next weeks, but definitely in the coming months, he’ll be someone who will be a big player for us.”
Latics round off their pre-season fixtures this weekend, with trips to Southport on Friday night and Grimsby on Saturday afternoon.