Wrexham look set to miss out on the signing of Joe Gelhardt this month, and that could mean that the club may need to reassess their transfer targets.
With Wrexham challenging for yet another promotion, Phil Parkinson cannot afford to rest on his laurels and will be eager to add to his squad this month.
Wrexham are accustomed to getting their own way since the takeover of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, especially in the transfer market, with the owners spending huge sums of money to help the Red Dragons make progress.
But, as we approach the halfway point in this transfer window, we are yet to see Wrexham complete a deal this month, and more frustration could lie ahead.
Joe Gelhardt set to sign for Hull City this month
Wrexham were given a boost recently when it was revealed one of their transfer targets, Joe Gelhardt, was free to leave Leeds United this month.
However, the Red Dragons have faced intense competition to sign the young attacker, and it now seems Hull City are leading the race for Gelhardt, with a deal thought to be imminent.
It leaves Wrexham needing to find another option as they look for attacking reinforcements to boost their chances of a third-successive promotion in the backend of this campaign.
Luckily, there are alternatives out there, but with a move for Patrick Bamford also looking unlikely, Parkinson and co. may need to think twice about their transfer strategy.
Has Phil Parkinson’s pulling power reached its limit?
In the past, we have seen Wrexham manage to lure League One and League Two talent to the National League, be it through big wage offers or the lure of the Hollywood project at hand (or both).
But, there is a big gulf between the Championship and League One, and perhaps Wrexham are finally finding that their pulling power has hit a wall.
Of course, the Wrexham owners can throw as much money as they want at transfer targets, but the fact of the matter is that the Championship is genuinely one of the most exciting, competitive, and rich leagues in world football, and players rarely want to leave that.
At least not in their prime, and Gelhardt, aged just 22, is clearly not willing to take a step down at this stage in his career.
Wrexham will surely be able to lure a more experienced Championship player down to League One this month, but they can forget about nabbing a top young talent from the division above. Now, it just remains to be seen whether attainable targets can deliver what the Red Dragons need to land promotion.