The wait is almost over for Wrexham fans and everyone involved at the club. The Dragons kick off their Championship campaign on Saturday and against relegated Southampton in what should be a very interesting and hard-fought game between two very differing sides.
The Saints achieved just 12 points in the Premier League last season, finishing rock bottom. They’ve since appointed Will Still as manager, although Southampton fans are worried about the new season due to a lack of signings over the summer.
Meanwhile, Wrexham have signed eight new players so far. Dragons fans are very excited for the new season and this new-look squad, and Phil Parkinson could yet surprise many and make promotion contenders out of his side once again.
One new signing who will surely prove helpful across the course of the Championship campaign is Josh Windass.
- READ MORE: Wrexham now want to re-sign former player but he’ll cost Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac a pretty penny
Josh Windass predicts Wrexham to cause an upset vs Southampton
Few know what to expect of Wrexham or indeed Southampton ahead of the new season, but after tomorrow’s game we’ll know a lot more. There are a lot of Wrexham fans quietly optimistic about their chances heading to St Mary’s, whilst others seem to think it will be a real slog for the Dragons side.
But Windass feels that if Wrexham stick to their guns, play their game, then they could pull off an upset. Windass said to Leader Live ahead of Saturday’s game: “We’re playing against a top side but it’s up to us and the manager to combat that and try to get the best result we can. We are in the same division for a reason.
“I don’t look at Southampton as an ex-Premier League team when I’m going down there on the opening day of the season, or be impressed by that. I just look at them as another team in this division that we’re going to try and beat.
“They had what they did last year and didn’t win many games so they’re coming into the season with not much confidence.
“If we can go there and implement our game plan and get our players on the ball and do what we can do, I’m sure there’s a lot of players in the same bracket as me that know we can go there and [cause] what seems to be an upset, but I don’t think it would be.”
- READ MORE: Wrexham now want to re-sign former player but he’ll cost Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac a pretty penny
Josh Windass’ career record vs Southampton
Windass is certainly no stranger to the Championship with 173 career appearances in the English second tier along with 40 goals and 17 assists. And for Sheffield Wednesday he made 182 total appearances with 53 goals and 23 assists across that time.
Not only a goal scorer, but Wrexham new boy Windass is a very creative player and someone who can operate in many positions in the final third of the pitch. Against Southampton though, Windass doesn’t have a very good record having played three games against the Saints losing all three.
| Club | Games | Goals | Assists |
| Sheff Wed | 182 | 53 | 23 |
| Accrington Stanley | 86 | 23 | 13 |
| Rangers | 73 | 19 | 13 |
| Wigan Athletic | 56 | 9 | 4 |
Wrexham meanwhile have only ever played Southampton seven times in their existence, winning three of those seven and losing the other four. The last time the two teams met was way back in 1979 in a League Cup double header which Southampton won 8-0 on aggregate.
Saturday’s game kicks off at 12:30pm and will be shown live on Sky Sports.