Wrexham are currently unbeaten in their last four Championship fixtures as the season enters its second international break, meaning that there will be a two-week hiatus of club football in the second tier.
The Red Dragons began this recent fine form with their win against Norwich City at Carrow Road before securing three consecutive league draws, including their most recent on Friday night against Birmingham City.
Phil Parkinson has singled out George Dobson’s fine form across this run, as he has exercised his influence in the middle of the pitch, helping to steady the defence.
Another player who has been key to their improved defensive form has been Dominic Hyam, who has been a standout for Wrexham. Now a stat shows just how much they have improved in defence.
- READ MORE: Wrexham summer signing may need to explore options away from the Racecourse Ground in January
Wrexham keepers are less busy following tactical change
The Red Dragons were struggling at the beginning of the campaign, particularly in defence, before Phil Parkinson made a tactical change after their loss to QPR, moving to three at the back.
Wrexham have been harder to penetrate since that loss, and that has been demonstrated in their four league games starting with the Norwich win.
This resolute approach has been seen in the average amount of saves made by their keeper, as seen in their stats.
Danny Ward, who is currently injured, featured in the opening four fixtures, getting injured against Millwall.
On average across these matches, Ward had to make four saves per game, a total of 16 saves, demonstrating how busy he was and the ease at which teams were able to create chances to trouble the Welsh club.
However, this has all changed with Arthur Okonkwo in goal, as he has made 2.4 saves on average across his five starts, making 12 saves in total.
While this stat from FotMob ignores the goals that have got past the respective shot stoppers, it demonstrates how vital that tactical change from the manager was to lower the chances faced to give them a chance to secure draws and fight for victories.
- READ MORE: Craig Bellamy has unique demand for Wales ahead of their England clash, including Wrexham pair
Arthur Okonkwo deserves to keep his starting jersey
Danny Ward is set to be on the sidelines for several weeks, with the return of him to first-team action not exactly known, meaning that Arthur Okonkwo will get plenty of opportunities to demonstrate why he should keep hold of the starting keeper jersey.
While the former Liverpool keeper was brought to the club with the intention to be first choice, his unfortunate injury derailed that, and now he must watch on from the sidelines.
It would be tempting for Parkinson to put a keeper with Premier League experience straight back into his starting line-up upon his return, but so far Okonkwo has shown he deserves to be playing, particularly with his double save against Derby County.
So, Ward faces a battle to return to action for the Red Dragons in a battle that fans will encourage, as they will want the best and in-form keeper starting for their side on their Championship journey.