Wilfried Nancy in surprise running to be manager of EFL club soon after Celtic sacking
Wilfried Nancy’s reign at Celtic was simply disastrous.
The Frenchman was only in charge of the Hoops for eight matches, where he oversaw six defeats, including a 3-1 loss to St Mirren in the Premier Sports Cup final.
As a result, Nancy was sacked by Celtic in January, going down as the shortest-serving manager in the club’s history.
Despite doing a decent job at Columbus Crew in the MLS, his managerial reputation is in tatters.
Nevertheless, he is now linked with a quick return to the dugout, with Wigan Athletic on the hunt for a new manager.
Celtic sack Wilfried Nancy after just 33 days, with six losses in eight games in charge. pic.twitter.com/9siCBtCKSc
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) January 5, 2026
Wilfried Nancy just 12/1 to take over at Wigan Athletic
On Saturday, Wigan sacked Ryan Lowe after their terrible 6-1 loss to Peterborough.
A run of one win in their last 10 League One matches has seen the club fall to 22nd in the table, two points from safety.
Football Insider recently revealed that Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell has emerged as the front-runner for the vacant Wigan Athletic job.
However, the bookies also believe that Nancy has an outside chance of getting the job.
Club Statement | Ryan Lowe#wafc
— Wigan Athletic (@LaticsOfficial) February 7, 2026
According to one bookmaker, the former Celtic boss is just 12/1 to take over, making him the fifth-favourite for the role.
Nevertheless, it remains to be seen if Wigan will actually consider the Frenchman for the role, or if it is simply just speculation from the bookies.
Who else is in the running for the Wigan Athletic job?
Currently, the favourite for the Wigan job is Will Still at 5/4.
The former Southampton boss has been out of work since November after failing to get the Saints in the promotion race early into the campaign.
Following this is Caldwell at 6/4, who has done a highly impressive job at Exeter City since he took over in 2022.
Ruaidhri Higgins and Steve Bruce are also considered in the running at 8/1.
The former is currently the manager of Northern Irish side Coleraine, with the club currently second in the NIFL Premiership.
In comparison, Bruce is a free agent after he was sacked by Blackpool in October.
While Bruce has been linked to plenty of jobs across the EFL, he is yet to take up another role.