The League One transfer window is beginning to intensify ahead of the upcoming 2023/24 campaign.
It promises yet another competitive season, with numerous big name sides in the division and many that have put the gears in motion for next year.
What are the latest League One transfer updates?
With only a matter of weeks until the season initiates, we summarized all the latest transfer news across the league.
Portsmouth, Oxford and Charlton eye Cardiff City’s Isaak Davies
According to The Sun’s Phil Cadden, the League One trio are all angling a move for Davies, who looks set to be part of a mass exodus at Cardiff this summer.
Davies had emerged as one of Cardiff’s most promising prospects during the 2021/22 season as he broke into the first-team alongside fellow homegrown academy product Rubin Colwill, but injuries and new options in the final third at the club have meant his progression has stagnated somewhat.
And with new boss Erol Bulut having already brought in three forwards amid a summer squad upheaval in the form of Karlan Grant, Yakou Meite and Ike Ugbo, it does not appear that Davies- who can play as either a striker or winger- is in his plans for next season.
Any such move will likely be a loan given the 21-year-old’s long-term potential, but it is indeed a potential transfer that would hugely benefit any of the three sides, with Davies having previously shone for the Welsh outfit.
Barnsley close in on Max Watters return
Another striker that looks set to be playing his football away from Cardiff next term is Watters.
After being signed from Crawley Town all the way back in 2021 in what appeared a real coup for the Bluebirds, Watters is yet to justify the hype that his arrival had been met with amid two loan spells elsewhere and an inability to translate his fourth-tier goalscoring form to the Championship.
The attacker’s most recent loan spell was to Barnsley during the second-half of last season, for whom he scored four goals in 21 appearances, and as per WalesOnline, they appear to be closing in on the return of his services with further movement anticipated in the coming days.
Now 24 and evidently unable to cope with the demands of Championship football, it looks inevitable that Bulut will sanction a permanent exit for Watters, and Barnsley will hope that they can finally get him to make good of his promise.
Wycombe set to seal transfer for former-Reading midfielder
Elsewhere, Bucks Free Press have revealed that Wycombe are nearing the signing of Dejan Tetek following his release from Reading over the summer.
The young midfielder has been on trial with the Chairboys as of late and has been spotted in team meetings ahead of what appears very much an imminent transfer.
And Tetek, who played 10 times for Reading as they succumbed to relegation in the Championship last season, would come as Wycombe’s sixth summer signing as Matt Bloomfield looks to assemble a squad that can challenge in the higher echelons of League One next year.
- Wigan Athletic’s ownership issues have been resolved, allowing the club to focus on the upcoming season and aim for competitiveness in League One.
- The team will start the season with an 8-point deduction due to previous off-field problems, which could hinder their promotion push.
- Despite this setback, Wigan has a strong forward line and should have enough quality to comfortably secure a mid-table finish. Coach Shaun Maloney is well-regarded and the team has reasons to be optimistic.
Wigan Athletic will hope that the start of a new era has begun ahead of the 2023/24 season, with the club’s ownership finally resolved.
The Latics had a season to forget and were relegated from the Championship in the last campaign, finishing bottom of the second tier. However, with off-field issues hopefully behind them, a full pre-season, and a summer of decent transfer business, the club will hope they can be competitive towards the top end of League One.
It’s no secret that Wigan had plenty of problems under their former owners, with a failure to pay wages on time a common occurrence in 2022/23. That is why they will start this season on -8 points, which is potentially problematic for Shaun Maloney and his side in embarking on a promotion push.
Instead, they may have had to change their outlook on next season, as the club looks to form a squad capable of competing and stabilising for a season in League One.
They face Derby County in the opening game on Saturday, where both sides will need to be at their best to come out on top in this highly-contested opening affair and also hoping to have put their off-field issues behind them.
It is still unclear at this stage of the transfer window what budget Maloney is working with, as the club is bound to be cautious over spending, and so far their incomings have involved loans or free transfers.
However, the new regime and management of Maloney is potentially the beginning of a new era at the DW Stadium, and Wigan fans will hope the campaign to come will have lots more highs than lows.
What are the pundits saying about Wigan Athletic?
Former England and Leeds midfielder Carlton Palmer feels as though the Latics have to have survival in mind this season, due to the points deduction they head into the campaign with.
Speaking exclusively to Football League World, he said: “Wigan finished bottom of the Championship last season, having come up as League One champions the season before.
“They will start the season with an eight points deduction for failing to pay players salaries and breaching EFL rules several times during the season.
New Wigan boss, Shaun Maloney, has a tough job on his hands and it does not get any harder than an opening day fixture against Derby County, who are the bookies favourites to win the league.
“In my opinion, survival for Wigan in League One will be considered a successful season.”
Where will Wigan finish in 2023/24?
It’s hard to see Wigan troubling the promotion mix, but they can also expect better than a relegation battle.
There is cause for optimism, especially when looking at their forward line in particular, which includes the likes of: Charlie Wyke, Callum Lang, Josh Magennis, James McClean, and Callum McManaman.
They should be the envy of many sides in League One, which is a league that doesn’t look as competitive in terms of quality as last season.
There’s no reason, even with the eight point deduction, that they should not be fairly comfortable in mid-table. Maloney is a decent coach and the right type of character you would want, too.
