Roger Espinoza, the Honduras midfielder footballer, has finally received his UK work permit, allowing him to make the move to his new team, Wigan.
The visa came through on Thursday (January 3rd), meaning Espinoza can fly to England and complete the details for his two-and-a-half-year deal with the Northern team in time for the FA Cup tie with Bournemouth.
“I am just so happy to finally be here,” the player said. “It's taken a while to get all the paperwork done but now I can concentrate on fighting for my place and helping the team.”
The team originally found out that the work permit application had been successful in December 2013, when a delegation from Wigan travelled to London to hear the Football Association panel make its decision on whether or not to issue the permit.
Wigan manager Roberto Martinez said that things have moved particularly quickly now that the immigration documentation has all been sorted. “Usually players would have more time preparing for their debut and getting used to their new team-mates, but Roger is so desperate to play as soon as he can that we hope to see him on the pitch on Saturday,” he commented.
The manager added that he has had his eye on the 26-year-old since seeing him play for Honduras during the 2012 Olympic Games. Upon first hearing about the successful application, Martinez remarked: “He has been developing into an exciting footballer over the last three seasons in the LS and has enjoyed terrific experiences at international level, specifically his role with Honduras in the Olympic Games.”
He added: “The games versus Spain and Brazil in that tournament showed the winning and strong mentality that he possesses, which will be an important asset to our squad.”