Wrexham have completed the signing of free agent Danny Ward as Phil Parkinson bolsters his goalkeeping ranks ahead of the new season.
Wrexham snapped up Ryan Hardie from Plymouth Argyle in June, and fans only had to wait around two weeks for another new recruit to arrive.
Danny Ward joined Wrexham on Tuesday, signing a two-year contract in an emotional return to the STōK Cae Ras.
Ward not only hails from Wrexham but also came up in the club’s youth ranks before joining Liverpool in 2012.
Leicester City released Ward at the end of his contract this summer, and Wrexham have handed him a homecoming.
Wrexham released Mark Howard, Liam Hall and Brad Foster this summer, so the signing of a new goalkeeper was always expected.
Callum Burton can count himself unlucky after Danny Ward’s Wrexham arrival
Few really expected Ward to be the man signing for Wrexham, though.
Many thought Ward would chase first-team football after spending most of his time at Leicester on the bench.
Ward arrives as competition for Arthur Okonkwo, but is almost certain to start the season as the second choice.
However, that does mean that Callum Burton looks set to be relegated to third choice ahead of the Championship season.
Wrexham signed Burton on a free transfer last summer as he departed Plymouth Argyle on a free transfer.
Burton only had a brief run in the Wrexham side, but he impressed in place of Okonkwo before picking up an injury.
We only saw glimpses of Burton, but he showed enough quality to suggest that he would have been great competition for Okonkwo in the Championship.
The injury was unfortunate, but there wasn’t really much more he could have done during his stint in the team.
Phil Parkinson hailed Burton for an ‘excellent’ performance against Stockport County, and Wrexham fans were certainly pleased with his displays.
Burton would surely have looked at pre-season as another opportunity to earn valuable minutes and impress Parkinson.
Instead, Burton is now in a battle with an international goalkeeper – and that is just to be named on the Wrexham bench.
Parkinson wants competition across the pitch, but Burton can feel a little unlucky to have seen such a high-profile goalkeeping addition arrive.
Callum Burton’s Wrexham contract
Burton will embrace the competition and push to make Parkinson think twice about dropping him down the pecking order.
We couldn’t exactly blame Burton if he were thinking about a move away, as the 28-year-old is certainly good enough to play regularly elsewhere.
Burton signed a two-year contract with Wrexham last summer, meaning he now has less than a year to go on his deal.
League One clubs are surely calling Wrexham to ask about a potential deal for Burton, who suddenly looks unlikely to sign a new contract.
Wrexham may want Burton to stay, but being third choice surely wasn’t in his plans when he moved to the STōK Cae Ras.
Tuesday’s deal was surely a real disappointment, but if Parkinson calls upon Burton at any point, you can be sure that he will be ready to go, just as he was after Okonkwo’s injury last season.