Wrexham may have made some eye-catching signings under Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, but youth development is just as important moving forward.
Wrexham head into this weekend’s game against Charlton Athletic with a third straight promotion in sight.
Phil Parkinson’s side sit second in the League One table, two points ahead of Wycombe Wanderers with two games to play.
Wrexham’s 2-1 win at Blackpool on Monday leaves Parkinson closing in on a place in the Championship – something unimaginable just a few years ago.
This summer is bound to bring plenty of transfer speculation, and it has already started with Wrexham keen on Tom Lawrence.
Promotion to the Championship would also allow Wrexham to continue improving the infrastructure around the club, with youth development a key factor.
Neco Williams on picking Liverpool over Wrexham
Wrexham have seen Max Cleworth become a star and Harry Ashfield recently signed a new contract having shown huge promise.
The hope is that Wrexham will continue to develop young players through the academy in the coming years, as the profile of the club continues to rise.
Historically, keeping local players out of the clutches of Liverpool and Manchester United has not been easy.
Harry Wilson and the aforementioned Lawrence hail from Wrexham, but joined Liverpool and Manchester United respectively.
Wales right back Neco Williams also fits that bill, hailing from Wrexham but joining Liverpool at a young age.
Now a Premier League regular after joining Nottingham Forest for £17million in 2022, as noted by BBC Sport, Williams has opened up on his early decision whilst speaking to Nottingham Forest’s official website.
It’s noted that Wrexham, Manchester United, Everton, Tranmere Rovers and Liverpool all wanted Williams, but he chose the latter.
Wrexham seemingly didn’t make Williams’ final choices at the time, as he weighed up Everton, Liverpool or United as his top priorities.
Despite coming from a family of United fans, Williams chose Liverpool, admitting that he felt ‘most comfortable’ with the Reds.
“I started to go to Liverpool and Everton sessions, and they were the two most interested in me. It wasn’t until the age of nine that I had to choose a team to sign for. I was still playing for Man United at that time too, training with both teams.
“All my family are United supporters, so everyone thought I would choose them, but I chose Liverpool. It’s hard to remember exactly why, but I think it came down to where I felt most comfortable and at that time it was Liverpool,” he added.
Neco Williams could be a target in the future
We would love to see the likes of Wilson and Williams turning out for Wrexham at some stage.
Wilson didn’t rule out a Wrexham move last year, and Williams is the ‘dream’ signing for Humphrey Ker.
Williams has impressed for Champions League-chasing Nottingham Forest this season, so we aren’t expecting him to even be a realistic Wrexham target for at least a few years.
Still, luring Williams back to Wrexham for a hometown return would be great to see, especially as landing him as a kid was just so difficult.
Williams officially signed for Liverpool in 2007, at which point Wrexham were in the lower reaches of League Two before being relegated in 2008.
Competing with Liverpool and United was almost impossible at that point, and few would blame Williams for his decision.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds have changed the landscape, though, and Ker believes more people now want to stay in Wrexham.
That may extend to young talents and Wrexham now have a much, much greater shot at luring a talent of Williams’ ilk ahead of Liverpool or United.