The English Football League are proposing changes to how the Championship play-off is formatted, which would of course have implications for Wrexham.
Wrexham are back in the second tier of English football for the first time in more than 40 years after the Dragons won promotion from League One last time round.
It was a third-straight promotion under manager Phil Parkinson, and owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, who are wasting no time in trying to reach the Premier League.
This summer, Wrexham spent £40million on new players, which was the third-highest spend of any team in the entire division.
A top six finish would certainly be a huge achievement for Wrexham this season. For that, they’ll need to finish between 2nd and 6th. But proposed EFL changes to the Championship play-off format would see six teams qualify for the play-offs, whilst two still go up automatically.
- READ MORE: QPR boss stumped by Wrexham question during presser, Phil Parkinson spoke about the same thing
Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson uninterested in Championship play-off changes
The plans were announced on Thursday. The changes would see six teams qualify for the play-offs and then an initial eliminator round, before the two-legged semi-final clashes and then the final at Wembley have now, similar to how the National League play-off format works.
Speaking to the press ahead of the weekend, though, Parkinson first said that this was the first he had heard of the proposed changes, despite the initial report saying that Championship clubs had largely responded positively to the news, before the Wrexham boss then said that he’s happy with the current format.
Parkinson said ahead of the QPR game: “That’s the first I’ve heard of it, so I’ll have to have a think about that. If you ask me off the top of my head, I’m happy with the format as it is.”
The difficulty that the EFL faces in making the changes happen
The Championship is exciting as it is. Wrexham signing 13 new players this summer and spending as much as they did adds another very exciting element to the second tier, along with the likes of Birmingham City coming up and spending big as well.
But the gulf between the Premier League and the Championship keeps on getting bigger. The EFL is understandably taking actions to decrease the gap and to keep the EFL and the Championship as popular as possible, but likewise the Premier League.
It was reported upon the initial story breaking that the Premier League is concerned about potentially diluting the quality of teams in the top flight by agreeing to a six-team play-off tournament in the Championship, as a team could sneak into 8th, per se, and make it all the way to the final and win.
For now, the changes seem to be in their very early, discussion stages. The fact that Parkinson had not even heard of the changes suggests that they’re still not being discussed all that seriously either.
Wrexham play QPR in the Championship on Saturday in a 3pm kick-off.