The ‘£10m-20m’ gap Phil Parkinson just highlighted at Wrexham will worry Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac

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Wrexham suffered something of a reality check in their opening day defeat to Southampton this weekend, and Phil Parkinson knows exactly where the problem lies.

It was very nearly a dream return to the second tier for Wrexham, with the ‘immense’ Josh Windass giving the Red Dragons the lead in the first-half from the spot.

Despite clinging on to that advantage until the 90th minute, Phil Parkinson saw his side come away from St. Mary’s empty handed thanks to late goals from Ryan Manning and Jack Stephens.

We learned a lot from Wrexham’s defeat to Southampton, and we’re pretty sure Parkinson and the Wrexham owners also took some valuable lessons away from the game, too.

• READ MORE: Conor Coady praises ‘incredible’ factor in Wrexham defeat vs Southampton, it’s been ‘a long time’

What Phil Parkinson said about Southampton squad

Speaking to ITV after the defeat, Parkinson was quick to highlight one major difference between the Wrexham squad and that of his opponents, suggesting that Will Still’s side were able to change the game thanks to the abundance of expensive talent they had on the bench.

Parkinson said: “I thought it was a really good performance from us against a team that’s come down out of the Premier League and is pulling players off the bench who are worth £10m to £20m.”

There are some who would point to the fact that Wrexham have spent more than Southampton this summer as contradictory to Parkinson’s statement.

Plus, it’s worth noting that Jack Stephens joined the club’s youth side for around £100,000 12 years ago, while goalscorer Ryan Manning did come off the bench, but he actually arrived at Southampton on a free transfer.

However, when we dig deeper into the numbers behind the two teams, it does seem Parkinson has a point, and it’ll be cause for concern for Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac.

• READ MORE: How Phil Parkinson beat more than 60 rivals to land the Wrexham job, it was an easy decision

The truth about Southampton and Wrexham squad values

In the game at St. Mary’s on Saturday, Southampton brought on the following players: Ryan Manning, Ross Stewart, Mateus Fernandes, Cameron Archer, and Damion Downs.

According to Transfermarkt, Manning is now worth £2.6m, Stewart cost the Saints £8m and is still worth around £3.4m, Fernandes was signed for £13m (and could go for £20m this summer according to reports), while Archer is worth £10.4m and is a player Southampton splashed £15.2m on.

Downs is a new signing at Southampton this summer, costing them around £7m. His Transfermarkt value may be closer to £5.2m but it’s worth taking that with a pinch of salt.

All in all, the Saints bench was worth a whopping £46.4m. Meanwhile, the Wrexham bench was worth roughly £7.15m.

While the likes of Arthur Okonkwo and Ryan Longman (both valued at £1.7m) and Ryan Hardie (£1.5m) would command considerable fees, Wrexham also had veteran James McClean (valued at just £86k) and youth product Harry Ashfield among their substitutes.

There are plenty of things Wrexham need to work on after the defeat to Southampton, but improving that squad depth is certainly going to be something Rob and Ryan look at closely before deadline day, and we’re sure, again in January.

Money isn’t everything, especially when it comes to actual value, but there’s no denying that Wrexham are still a lot closer to League One level than Premier League figures with regards to their playing squad.

Interestingly, Transfermarkt values the entire Wrexham squad at just £24.5m, so the Southampton bench alone was worth more than £20m more than the Red Dragons’ whole roster of players.