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Wigan Athletic reappointed Gary Caldwell as head coach in February, a decade after his first spell in charge. Caldwell returned after leaving Exeter City, having previously spent six years as a player at the club and 18 months as manager from April 2015.
The former defender made 100 Premier League appearances for Wigan and captained the club to a famous FA Cup final victory over Manchester City in 2013.
After retiring in 2014-15, Caldwell took charge of a relegation-threatened Wigan side in the Championship. Although he could not prevent relegation, he guided the Latics back to the second tier as League One champions in 2016 before being dismissed later that year following a difficult start to the season.
Caldwell later managed Chesterfield and Partick Thistle before joining Exeter City in 2022, where he recorded 180 games in charge.
Wigan Athletic have now officially confirmed the appointment of former Liverpool midfielder John Welsh as First-Team Coach ahead of the 2026/27 League One campaign, strengthening Caldwell’s backroom staff.
The 42-year-old made more than 400 career appearances for Liverpool, Tranmere Rovers and Preston North End before moving into coaching.
He began his coaching career at Preston in 2021, working with their academy before progressing to the Professional Development Phase.
Welsh helped guide Preston’s youngsters to several successes, including the LFA Professional Youth Cup and Youth Alliance Cup victories, before moving into first-team coaching with Barrow AFC in 2026.
He has now joined Wigan’s coaching staff at the Brick Community Stadium, bringing further experience and development expertise to Caldwell’s team.
Commenting on John Welsh’s appointment, Gary Caldwell said: “We spoke to several different candidates over the summer to come in and help the coaching department.
“We are going to use Peter Atherton in a more individual development role, so we felt like we needed another coach to come in and oversee everything.
“Having spoken to a number of different people, John was our number one choice. We felt he was young, hungry, and fit the profile of the type of person we wanted to come in and help the players and coaching department.
“He has fitted in really well since he came in. We are delighted to have him and feel like we’ve got the numbers now to really support the players in every aspect of the game, with myself, Perks (David Perkins), Pete, and now John.”
John Welsh joined Liverpool’s Academy at the age of 10 and progressed through the ranks to become captain of the reserve team.
Despite impressing and earning regular call-ups for England’s Under-21 side, first-team opportunities under Gerard Houllier were limited, particularly after the arrival of Salif Diao. Welsh made his senior Liverpool debut as a substitute in a League Cup tie against Ipswich Town in December 2002.
He added two more substitute appearances during the 2003-04 season before featuring seven times under Rafael Benítez in 2004-05. He left Liverpool to join Hull City ahead of the 2005-06 season.
🤝 We are pleased to confirm the appointment of John Welsh as First Team Coach!
— Wigan Athletic (@LaticsOfficial) July 10, 2026