Latics boss reveals he had a hand in Fondop’s move to Boundary Park

Mike Fondop at Oldham Athletic is quickly becoming a legend.

But if it weren’t for a former Latics manager, he might never have discovered Boundary Park.

Three years ago, Dino Maamria took up the phone and initiated a transfer deadline day move after observing his former team suffering at the bottom of League Two.

Prior to taking over in September 2022, Maamria was Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s assistant at Burton Albion, where Fondop had been released in September 2021.

Maamria believed the striker might contribute to Latics, but he had left for Hartlepool.

“I spoke to Oldham and told them to take him when they were fighting relegation,” Maamria stated.

Latics did not benefit from his injury on debut, and their attempt to avoid relegation ultimately failed.

With 16 goals to date, including three in the previous two games, Maamria believes Fondop is now making up for lost time. Additionally, he thinks he can play a big part in their return to the Football League this year.

“I hope so,” he said.

“He was a delight to watch at Rochdale. He was brilliant in terms of attacking threats, every time the ball went forward he got hold of it, he brought others into play. But not just that, the way he defended…in the first half he put his body on the line, every set play that Rochdale put in his head was first contact. It was a tremendous performance, but I’m not surprised by Mike Fondop, that’s what he does. He works his socks off and it’s brilliant to see the fans with him, they love him.”