Leam Richardson, Paul Cook’s assistant at Chesterfield, Portsmouth and Wigan, and currently caretaker-manager with the Latics, is certain his former boss will bring success to the Blues and hasn’t ruled out reuniting with him at Portman Road.

“Made up for him,” Richardson, 41, told BBC Radio Manchester when asked about Cook getting the Town job.

“In my opinion, and I’ll be biased a little bit because I’ve worked for him for so long, I think he’s one of the best managers out there. How he hasn’t kicked on into the Championship or Premier League before now is anybody’s guess.

“But he joins an absolutely fantastic massive club in Ipswich, obviously with a fantastic owner, who has been doing it for a long time, and they’re craving success. With Paul joining them, I have no doubt that Ipswich Town will get success.”

Asked whether Cook had called him and whether there was a chance he could join him in Suffolk, Richardson didn’t rule it out.

“He’s never stopped being on the phone, to be fair,” he added. “He’s very conscious of the situation here. He’s always there for advice or his own thoughts on things. That hasn’t changed.

“I think everybody’s seen my commitment to Wigan at the minute, there’s a job to be done. I don’t think anybody can question anybody’s integrity, so we’ll see what happens.”

Yesterday, Cook named Gary Roberts as his first-team coach with Matt Gill, first-team coach under Paul Lambert and caretaker-boss for last night’s 2-1 win at Accrington, and goalkeeper-coach Jimmy Walker staying on. No further appointments are currently expected to be made.

Photo: Action Images

trncbluearmy added 09:15 - Mar 3 shoe in for the job, he`s not describing the current owner
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Wallingford_Boy added 09:18 - Mar 3 Are we collecting first team assistant managers/coaches?!
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MrJase_79 added 09:28 - Mar 3 Sounds like he's going to get Richardson in? According to this article he doesn't have an Assistant Manager yet, unless First Team Coach are now one and the same?
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Sixto6 added 09:40 - Mar 3 I'd be very surprised if he doesn't bring in his own assistant manager and one other coach. As slightly over the top with his assessment of the owner - sounds like someone after a job ?!?!?
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jdtractor96 added 09:42 - Mar 3 What's the current situation regarding a fitness coach?
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Europablue added 09:43 - Mar 3 Wigan are supposedly on the cusp of new ownership, so they might want to bring their own man in, so Richardson may become available. The problem is, what do we do with all Gary Roberts and Matt Gill? It ready seems difficult with two men seemingly in the same role, we wouldn't want another.
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Europablue added 09:46 - Mar 3 Sixto6 Paul Cook was on an upward trajectory and that was curtailed by the situation that was going on off the pitch at Wigan. He absolutely has the quality to be a Championship manner. If he got us promoted this year, then I would be fairly confident of avoiding any kind of relegation fight.
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PositivelyPortman added 09:49 - Mar 3 We'll soon have more back room staff than we've got playing staff at this rate. I'm hoping Brett baby is cool with that.
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BlueBlood90 added 11:03 - Mar 3 I would expect he'll be joining in the summer. From the outside looking in, it would look like Richardson's done a fantastic job at Wigan with the little to no resources he's got there so he's clearly a capable guy. Really hope he joins.
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SouperJim added 11:06 - Mar 3 I got as far as "fantastic owner"...
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MidlandsBlue92 added 11:07 - Mar 3 New managers bringing in their own staff is key to getting their own ideas across to the team. Lets hope PC gets the team in he wants!
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Town4me added 12:31 - Mar 3 Is he Richard wrights long lost brother? 🤔
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pennblue added 12:44 - Mar 3 Matt Gill, as nice a bloke as I am sure he is, was bought in by PL. There is no guarantee Paul Cook and Matt Gill will hit it off. Far better to have a clean slate and Paul Cook bring in his own team who he has experience of. We need harmony in that setup, with all working together as a strong team.
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