It feels like Phil Parkinson has been trying to sign one player for Wrexham for an age, and the door could now be open for him to do it.
Wrexham have spent well and heavily during the last two transfer windows, breaking their transfer record three times.
Sam Smith arrived in a record deal from Reading, thought to be the club’s first-ever signing for over £1m.
Smith joined the same day Jay Rodriguez was pried away from Burnley, ending Wrexham’s long pursuit of striking reinforcements.
However, there is one player Phil Parkinson has been trying to bring to the Racecourse Ground for nearly a year now.
Back in the summer, Wrexham held talks to sign Michael Smith of Sheffield Wednesday but eventually settled on a £590,000 deal for Modou Faal.
More recently, it was reported that a transfer approach for Smith was made by the Welsh outfit in January.
Yet again though, the striker once again remained at Hillsborough, though that could be set to change in the coming months.
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Sheffield Wednesday could be forced to let Wrexham target Michael Smith leave for free
Shaun Harvey pulled out all the stops to sign Smith for Wrexham, including visiting the club’s stadium.
Though it did not work out in the winter, the door could now be open to sign the number nine for nothing in the summer.
The Englishman is out of contract at Hillsborough in June 2025, with Smith discussing his Sheffield Wednesday future earlier this season.
It remains to be seen if he would agree to put pen to paper on a new contract, but given what is happening in Yorkshire right now, it seems very unlikely the club will even be able to offer him a deal, never mind negotiate terms.
Sheffield Wednesday have not paid any of their players’ wages for the month of March due to ‘cashflow’ problems.
A statement from the club read: “Sheffield Wednesday can confirm a temporary issue with the payment of player salaries for the month of March.
“This has occurred as a result of significant sums of money owed to the chairman’s businesses, which has in turn impacted on the club’s immediate cashflow.
“The chairman is working hard to resolve this situation at the earliest possible opportunity and in the meantime thanks everyone for their patience and understanding.”
So, if Smith isn’t even getting paid right now, it does seem very likely he will be leaving for free in June when his contract runs out, and Parkinson could finally get his man.
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Michael Smith compared to Wrexham strikers
Parkinson has, as already mentioned, added two more strikers to his ranks in 2025.
However, despite having seven senior options right now, Steven Fletcher will likely leave when his deal runs out in the summer.
There are also question marks over the quality of players like Ollie Palmer and Paul Mullin, while a loan move for the inexperienced Faal would be best come 2025/26.
In turn, there should be plenty of room for another striker to arrive at Wrexham in the next transfer window.
| Player | League appearances | League goals |
| Michael Smith | 35 | 8 |
| Sam Smith (for Wrexham) | 12 | 4 |
| Jay Rodriguez | 12 | 2 |
| Paul Mullin | 26 | 3 |
| Ollie Palmer | 27 | 3 |
| Jack Marriott | 20 | 5 |
Wednesday’s form has been mixed this season, but Smith is still outscoring most Wrexham players despite plying his trade in a higher division.