Ahead of their clash against Gillingham tomorrow, Phil Parkinson has revealed how pleased he is with the Wrexham squad he has at his disposal.
Unlike a lot of teams at this level, Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson has the privilege of making several changes to his side to freshen up his starting XI.
He exercised that privilege on Tuesday night against MK Dons as he rested star strikers Paul Mullin and Steven Fletcher while goalscoring midfielder Elliot Lee dropped to the bench.
Those alterations also saw captain Luke Young make a rare appearance in the side, his 250th for the club which was capped off by recording an assist.
Wrexham boast a big squad, especially for the fourth tier, and that was added to in January with the additions of Jack Marriott and Luke Bolton.
Those two signings showcased their intent to win promotion at the first time of asking and while they haven’t yet established themselves as regular starters, it shows the level of quality Parkinson has to choose from.
Phil Parkinson now blown away by the Wrexham squad
On Tuesday, Parkinson named a star-studded bench consisting of Ben Tozer, Ryan Barnett, Lee, Ollie Palmer and Mullin.
For League Two, those options are simply ridiculous and that is without mentioning Fletcher. The 36-year-old was rested after scoring the winner against Notts County and could return against the Gills.
Unsurprisingly, when discussing his Wrexham squad following the aftermath of their 1-1 draw against MK Dons, Parkinson was left starstruck by the options he has to call upon from the bench.
Speaking to The Leader, he said: “I was pleased with the team selection and how it worked against MK Dons but when you look around the bench, you think ‘wow, that is some ammunition to come off the bench’.
“We wanted to freshen the team up but I felt fresh legs from the bench would be key.”
Parkinson is spoilt for choice
It’s not a bad headache to have by all means, but Parkinson is spoilt for choice every week when picking his Wrexham squad, even with the injuries to George Evans and James Jones.
The former Bradford City manager has a job on his hands to keep every player happy and that can sometimes be a difficult task.
However, the fact he can afford to rest the likes of Mullin and Lee, despite playing a side-chasing promotion, just shows how much faith he has in his full squad.
It means those sitting on the bench always know there is a possibility of first-team minutes is there to grab and that keeps players interested in the task at hand.
For Wrexham, promotion is the ultimate dream this term and that will be achieved by using a full squad of talent, not just relying on individuals.