21 Under 21: Sam Tickle (Wigan)

Episode #7 | George Elek and Ali Maxwell list the most outstanding young players in the EFL.

21 Under 21 will be released every weekday at noon in June, with paid subscribers unlocking early access to all video content.

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“A remarkable career progression… he’s been one of the best keepers in League One, if not THE best” — George Elek

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Sam Tickle

Wigan Athletic — League One, 2023/24:

• Born: 31 March 2002

• Position: Goalkeeper

• League Appearances: 46

• League Starts: 46

💯 Ever present… 

When the postman comes knocking, the letters are addressed to Mr Tickle. You know, the one with long arms – but not that one. No, this one has been hot-housed in the fire and fury of League One football. 

Making his EFL debut on the final day of the 2022/23 season, Sam Tickle kept a clean sheet against Rotherham. Wigan had already been relegated to League One, and on paper this could have just been one of those situations when you give the kid a chance in a free-hit fixture.

Fast forward 12 months and Tickle has not only grabbed the No.1 shirt but started in every single game of the League One season, for a team who would’ve finished only six points shy of the play-offs were it not for an eight-point deduction at the start of the campaign.

Ever present and ever-impressive, Tickle would tick a lot of boxes for Championship teams. But no dice – he’s just signed a four-year contract extension.

📈 At a glance

Pizza charts informed by match data. Each chart rates a chosen player from 0-99 across different metrics (e.g. Dribbles) according to their “percentile rank”. A 75 score shows a player outperforming 75% of other players in the dataset. Each dataset is position-specific. Negative metrics are reversed. [Credit: Riley Roberts.]

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▶️ Watch: Episode 7