Wigan have stressed they have only made an “informal enquiry” about Bristol City’s Nicky Maynard and not an official bid.

The wheels appeared to be very much in motion regarding Maynard’s potential move to the DW Stadium when a statement on the City website yesterday said the npower Championship outfit had given the Latics permission to speak to the 25-year-old, adding that “discussions to finalise a transfer fee with the Premier League club are at an advanced stage.”

However, Wigan today released a statement of their own confirming that “contrary to heavy media speculation, no official bid has been made to Bristol City for striker Nicky Maynard and there have been no official talks with the player or the club.”

In the statement, Latics chief executive Jonathan Jackson said: “An informal enquiry was made as to the player’s availability last week, but that really is as far as it goes at this stage.

“We are therefore disappointed by suggestions that talks are in an advanced stage.

“Some reports even suggest the player has turned (down) a move to Wigan Athletic, when in fact, no bid has been lodged.

“It is normal for clubs to communicate with each other to ascertain the availability of players – especially during a transfer window.

“However, we believe these conversations should remain confidential, otherwise, as we have seen in this instance, it can lead to exaggerated speculation.”

Maynard has been made available for transfer by the Robins after ending talks over a possible new contract with the club.

An unused substitute in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Doncaster, he has made 130 first-team appearances for the Robins, scoring 46 goals, since arriving from Crewe in a STG2.25million ($A3,341,000) deal in July 2008.