Wrexham sit second in the League One table after beating Stockport County 1-0 over the weekend.
The end of the season is now in sight and Wrexham fans are experiencing yet another promotion push.
Back-to-back promotions just isn’t enough for Phil Parkinson – he wants another one.
Wrexham beat Stockport County 1-0 on Saturday afternoon, reclaiming second place in the League One table.
Jay Rodriguez scored the only goal, reacting quickly to score on the rebound after seeing his first-half penalty saved by Corey Addai.
Wrexham occupy the final automatic promotion spot right now, but Wycombe now have a game in hand on Parkinson’s side.
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Alan Pardew on Jay Rodriguez
Wrexham now have just eight games to play and promotion to the Championship is within touching distance.
Recent wins have not been pretty but Parkinson won’t care at all as Wrexham continue to pick up victories.
That was exemplified by Rodriguez’s penalty; a poor spot kick was saved but he managed to get the ball over the line.
Paul Merson has praised Rodriguez’s reaction and the striker has now received praise from Alan Pardew too.
Pardew coached Phil Parkinson at Reading and then became Rodriguez’s manager at West Bromwich Albion in 2017.
Speaking on TalkSPORT, Pardew praised Rodriguez as a player ‘that you can’t help but like’.
Pardew noted that Rodriguez always gives his all and is a ‘lovely personality’ to have around, so he loves seeing the striker thrive at Wrexham and get himself in the goals.
“He’s one of those players that you can’t help but like, can you? He gives everything, he’s such a lovely personality, so it was nice to see him get on the [score]sheet,” said Pardew.
Phil Parkinson will stick by Jay Rodriguez
Rodriguez joined Wrexham from Burnley back in January, arriving alongside fellow striker Sam Smith.
The former England striker brings vast experience but he has been struggling for goals at Wrexham.
Saturday’s opener against Stockport was Rodriguez’s first in a Wrexham shirt and some of his performances have been unconvincing.
Wrexham fans still seem split on Rodriguez and the veteran forward will be looking for more goals to win those doubters over.
One thing we can confidently say is that Parkinson will stick by Rodriguez and keep him in the starting XI for the foreseeable future.
Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer are out of favour whilst Steven Fletcher is viewed as a super-sub who can make an impact off the bench.
Rodriguez and Smith are likely to be Wrexham’s strike pairing moving forward and will be the men charged with the task of taking Wrexham into the Championship.