Rodallega joined the club in January for £4.5m and has so far only started one game for the club as Bruce looked to ease him into English football. Hugo impressed on his debut against Liverpool after coming on as a substitute and almost made a name for himself instantly with a free kick hitting the bar which could have won the club the match back in January. Since then, Rodallega has featured mainly from the bench and Bruce now believes it is time to use his wildcard.
Speaking to the Wigan Evening Post, Bruce said:
"Rodallega's performance was one of the few positives from the West Ham game.
"I've mentioned a few times that I have to be careful with the boy because, when he came in from Mexico, the season there had ended and he hadn't played for six or seven weeks.
"We have given him time to settle in, find his feet, and he's edging towards starting for us, I think he will be a big player here."
If the club are to realistically challenge for Europe, they have to hit the goal trail again or face being sucked back into the relegation battle. It seems unlikely but with clubs at the bottom all starting to pick up points, Latics need to start winning to avoid this possibility.