As Wrexham prepare to take on Peterborough United in the EFL Trophy, there may still be some lingering resentment from the Posh over one transfer saga last summer.
The two League One outfits go head-to-head tonight in the EFL Trophy semi-final tie at the Racecourse Ground, looking to book a place in the final against Birmingham City.
While Wrexham and Peterborough are 17 places apart in the league, form and league position will go out of the window in the cup.
Wrexham will be the favourites, given their immense squad depth. Their squad is so strong, in fact, that one player they usurped Peterborough for in the summer might not even get into the team in the semi-final.
How Wrexham blew Peterborough out of the water in transfer battle
While Peterborough and Mansfield Town had hoped to sign Lewis Brunt in the summer transfer window, they were beaten to the punch by Wrexham, with the Red Dragons flexing their financial muscle to get the deal done.
Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony was unhappy with the fact Wrexham offered far more in wages to get Lewis Brunt to sign, with the common criticism that the Welsh outfit are buying success.
Indeed, Wrexham have managed to sign players that should technically be above their level time and time again. They did it in the National League and in League Two, with Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds splashing the cash to bring in top players to help the Red Dragons to promotion.
The record transfer signing of Sam Smith last month is yet another indication of Wrexham’s desire to spend big in order to improve quickly and progress through the leagues, but it will naturally frustrate the clubs around them.
Wrexham’s defensive balance doesn’t need tinkering with
The ironic thing is, Brunt probably won’t even play against Peterborough this time, at least not from the start, anyway.
In our predicted Wrexham lineup versus Peterborough, we wager that Phil Parkinson will be wary of tinkering with his defensive structure after seeing Max Cleworth, Eoghan O’Connell, and Tom O’Connor perform so well against Mansfield.
Brunt was hailed as a ‘Rolls Royce’ of a defender by Wrexham fans just a couple of weeks ago, and there’s no doubt he is top quality on his day. But, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and with so much at stake here, Parkinson would be foolish to mess with his defensive line.
That said, we could well see Brunt take the field later on, especially if Wrexham have a lead to protect.