Wrexham will look to avenge their opening day defeat against Southampton when they host another former Premier League big hitter in West Brom on Saturday.
Wrexham are finally mixing with the big guns of the English Football League, and on the opening day of the season, they more than held their own away at Southampton.
But in the end, Wrexham lost 2-1 against Southampton who scored twice in injury time to come back from an earlier Josh Windass goal from the penalty spot.
However, Phil Parkinson’s side take a little bit of momentum into their home game against West Brom on Saturday. It comes after Ollie Palmer’s late heroics saw Wrexham beat Hull City in the Carabao Cup first round on penalties.
Palmer came off the bench to score twice in injury time. And he may well have put himself in contention to play against West Brom this weekend, given the fact that Jay Rodriguez and Kieffer Moore are both injured.
EFL expert shares Wrexham vs West Brom score prediction
Ahead of the opening round of Championship fixtures, Wrexham were predicted to lose against Southampton, but they were expected to lose more heavily and more easily than they did in the end, with the Saints proving fortunate in the end to score from a stunning Ryan Manning free kick and then a late Jack Stephens goal in the 96th minute.
The Dragons certainly showed everyone that they’re here to compete and that they could cause a few upsets this season, and that is evident in Benjamin Bloom’s prediction for the Wrexham and West Brom game on Saturday.
Speaking on the Championship Check In, he’s backed Wrexham to pick up their first win of the season. He said: “I have seen Wrexham play and I think they’re going to be a tough nut to crack and I think home form is going to be something that they can maybe leverage there. It’s a new place, it’s a new kind of location on the Championship routing, isn’t it? So, they may have the element of surprise.
“I know these are professional footballers but sometimes, particularly with clubs like West Brom who’ve been in the Championship a lot, it can make a difference and I am backing Wrexham to win and get their first points of the season.”
Bloom predicts a 1-0 Wrexham win.
Wrexham set to achieve exciting first on Saturday
The club’s journey under owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac has certainly been a whirlwind one. Wrexham have broken record after record and made history in each of the last three seasons, earning promotion in each of them.
And on Saturday, the club will achieve another first by playing West Brom in the league for the very first time. In the two clubs’ history, Wrexham and West Brom have met twice. Both occasions came in North Wales and both were in domestic cups.
In 1930, Wrexham beat West Brom 1-0 in an FA Cup clash, before then losing 2-1 against the Baggies in a Watney Cup tie back in July 1971. Saturday’s game will see the two teams meet for the very first time in the league then, and for the very first time in more than 50 years.
It should be an exciting game between two teams who could well be in promotion contention come May next year. For Parkinson, though, the main aim of this game may be to simply get a point on the board, and to get this season rolling.