Wrexham will be looking to get back to winning ways when they host Birmingham City on Thursday night, and Phil Parkinson needs a big reaction from his players.
Last time out for the Red Dragons, a trip to Croud Meadow ended in defeat against struggling Shrewsbury Town, and Parkinson admitted his team were not good enough.
The loss there leaves Wrexham five points adrift of Birmingham at the top of the table, with the Blues having two games in hand, too.
Next up for Phil Parkinson and his men is a home clash with Chris Davies’ pacesetters at the Racecourse Ground, and we’ve had a go at predicting the Wrexham lineup for the big game.
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Wrexham team and injury news ahead of promotion six-pointer
Thursday night’s defeat to Shrewsbury did see some glimmers of hope, as Jack Marriott, Elliot Lee, and Ryan Barnett all returned to the team after spells on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, midfielders George Dobson and Jamie Jones are back in contention after their own absences, though it remains to be seen whether they can force their way into Parkinson’s plans.
The main injury issue facing Wrexham right now is with Lewis Brunt, who is struggling with a calf issue. It is unlikely he will be ready to play against Birmingham.
Aside from this, Callum Burton is out long-term and is not expected to be back in action for quite some time.
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Phil Parkinson must abandon formation experiment, and Jack Marriott gets starting spot
Against Shrewsbury, Parkinson mixed up his formation and went with a 3-5-1-1. That experiment didn’t work, clearly, and we expect he will revert to a 3-5-2 to provide a little more density in midfield, and more outlets in attack.
Elliot Lee will be key to that, with the playmaker needing to show his dynamism in pushing up to support the strikers, and dropping in when Wrexham don’t have the ball. The discipline of Matty James and Ollie Rathbone alongside him in the middle of the park will be very important.
Steven Fletcher earned praise last week for continuing his goalscoring run, and should start up top again, while Jack Marriott could well be deemed fit enough to go from the start against Birmingham.
While Wrexham’s defensive issues continue to rear their head lately, Parkinson doesn’t have much in the way of rotation options at the back. The trio of Max Cleworth, Eoghan O’Connell, and Thomas O’Connor are likely to play again, as throwing in someone like Dan Scarr for such a big game could be a risk.
Arthur Okonkwo will remain between the sticks. The Wrexham number one actually saved a penalty against Shrewsbury, but was let down by his teammates who were slow off their lines when it came to rushing in for the rebound.