Wrexham’s promotion to the Championship meant a lot of previously important players lost their place in Phil Parkinson’s eleven.
Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer were already on the fringes of the team and have now moved away from North Wales.
Elsewhere, after finishing as Wrexham’s top goalscorer in 2024/25, Elliot Lee has fallen out of favour in the second tier.
Sam Smith hasn’t started a league game this term after being so key in the second half of the Dragons’ League One campaign.
Meanwhile, after the addition of Danny Ward, long-time number one Arthur Okonkwo was benched at the start of this season.
Phil Parkinson explains why he dropped Arthur Okonkwo
There was an expectation that Ward was only signed as a backup goalkeeper following Mark Howard’s summer exit.
But after the Welsh international started 2025/26 as their number one, Wrexham fans demanded an explanation from Phil Parkinson.
Ward had a mixed start to the season, while Okonkwo was forced to sit on the bench during the opening stages.
Now, though, the Wrexham boss has finally explained his decision to remove the ex-Arsenal gem from his starting eleven.
He said, as per Leader Live: “He didn’t get the number one jersey at the start, because Wardy I felt was more ready, but Arthur’s now improving game-by-game.
“That [Derby County] was certainly his best display, and I’m pleased for him.”
What Phil Parkinson told Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac about Arthur Okonkwo
Okonkwo was initially signed on loan from Arsenal in September 2023, amid Ben Foster deciding to call time on his career.
The 24-year-old quickly cemented himself as Wrexham’s number one, and played the majority of their games en route to promotion.
He made a permanent move to the Racecourse Ground in 2024, after Parkinson told Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac to complete a transfer.
The Wrexham boss revealed: “I said to Rob and Ryan the one player who would be a huge investment for the club is Arthur. Of course, there’s going to be a number of clubs vying for his signature.”