It was a disappointing showing from Wrexham at New Meadow and Phil Parkinson needs to make some changes to his team.
Wrexham were favourites going into their meeting with Shrewsbury Town despite having a patchy away record this season.
The home side kicked off the day 22nd in the division with just one win to their name from their last five outings.
Phil Parkinson’s men, on the other hand, were third in the table prior to kick-off and looking to end the day at the League One summit ahead of Birmingham City, who play later on Friday.
However, when all was said and done, Wrexham lost 2-1 to Shrewsbury and now face an uphill battle to once again gain ground on Wycombe Wanderers and Birmingham.
Steven Fletcher earned praise from fans for his display on the night and is now the club’s top-scoring number nine with six.
The Scotsman could do nothing about Eoghan O’Connell’s disaster class for Wrexham versus Shrewsbury, however.
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Phil Parkinson needs to drop second Wrexham star after Eoghan O’Connell
Following the defeat, Wrexham fans sent a clear demand to Parkinson, urging him to replace O’Connell with summer signing, Dan Scarr.
The 29-year-old’s been off his game for a while now so him being axed does make a lot of sense.
However, there’s another player the Wrexham manager should be looking to replace next week.
Lewis Brunt is nearing a return from injury and when he is fit, he must come into the team in place of Max Cleworth.
Cleworth has been excellent going forward this term but his defending has, at times, left a lot to be desired.
Birmingham are one of the best teams in League One going forward and if Wrexham are to keep a clean sheet, Cleworth needs to be replaced.
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Max Cleworth was careless during Shrewsbury Town vs Wrexham
Cleworth was caught ball-watching several times on Thursday and perhaps didn’t do enough to cover for O’Connell’s mistake leading to the first goal.
His stats on the night were pretty concerning, with Sofascore handing him a 6.4 rating – the second-worst on the pitch.
The centre-back also lost possession a staggering 22 times, allowing Shrewsbury to counter on several occasions.
Granted, O’Connell’s errors were largely to blame for the defeat but if Cleworth starts and plays how he did in midweek, Tom Brady’s side will likely run riot.