Phil Parkinson has said where Wrexham are currently at in the transfer market as Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds eye recruits.
The transfer window is fast approaching and Wrexham are gearing up for a campaign in League One.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds will hand Phil Parkinson the funds to bolster his squad after waving goodbye to nine first-team players, including Luke Young and Ben Tozer.
It’s been a slow burner in the way of concrete transfer talk, with Wrexham biding their time in the market ready for the window opening on June 14.
Wrexham will need to add several quality players to their squad, predominantly at goalkeeper, centre back, left back, central midfield and striker as they aim to compete in the third tier.
Unlike in League Two, the Reds are placed on a more level playing field and competition is strong, especially with big clubs Huddersfield and Birmingham City dropping down from the Championship.
Phil Parkinson shares Wrexham’s current transfer strategy
With the financial muscle of Hollywood owners McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, many expect Wrexham to shell out big fees for players, although Parkinson has revealed that isn’t the case.
The 56-year-old – who has been promoted twice from this level previously – claims the Welsh side are currently scouring the market for free transfers and players with one year left on their contracts.
Speaking to The Leader, Parkinson admitted that Wrexham have equal spending power to the sides around them and hasn’t noticed any club inflating the price for a player, like they did previously in the fourth tier.
“We haven’t got to the stage of the summer of talking about fees and things like that,” Parkinson said.
“We are just looking at the players who are out of contract and the ones who have got one year left. Obviously we have done a lot of homework in the previous weeks as well.
“The clubs we will be competing with for those players will have equal spending power so I haven’t really sensed that at the moment that people are trying to inflate the price because it is Wrexham.”
Wrexham can use free market to their advantage
The formula to escape League One doesn’t require a mass amount of spending, as most clubs claim promotion without shelling out a fee for a player.
In the case of Wrexham, most will anticipate crazy spending from the division’s newcomers, but as Parkinson alluded to, there is a lot of value to be had in the free transfer market.
Derby have released Golden Glove Award winner Joe Wildsmith after winning promotion to the Championship, so he could be an option, while Jordan Williams, Marvin Ekpiteta and Stephen Humphrys all represent solid value on a free transfer.
Contrary to what others think, Wrexham haven’t spent much on transfer fees to reach the third tier, they’ve just attracted proven players who are good enough to play higher up the pyramid, including James McClean, Andy Cannon and George Evans, to name a few.
Parkinson’s comments suggest they will continue to utilise that strategy in the upcoming window as it has served them well so far.