Wrexham are making big moves this summer, but you may not know that one of the new players they’ve just signed was once incredibly close to joining Santos before the Brazilian outfit turned to their back-up choice: Neymar.
Moving up to the Championship was always going to mean that Wrexham needed to find a higher calibre of player, but no one quite expected them to be splashing the cash in the way they have so far this summer.
The early signing of Ryan Hardie was a shrewd move, but since then, the Red Dragons have snapped up top quality talent like George Thomason, Josh Windass, and Lewis O’Brien.
Sheffield Wednesday fans were gutted to lose Windass, and he’s been tipped to be a great signing for Wrexham. However, it could all have been very different.
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Josh Windass almost joined Santos in January
Back in January of this year, Windass was linked with a shock move to Santos in Brazil. At the time, he was at the peak of his powers at Wednesday, scoring regularly and keeping the Owls in with an outside shot of making the play-offs last season.
In fact, the rumours surrounding Windass’ future came just days after he scored a stunning goal from inside his own half against Derby County. No wonder the South American outfit were so keen on him, then.
It was Windass himself who confirmed the interest from Brazil. Speaking on talkSPORT, Windass was quizzed about a reported £10m offer for his services and replied: “I don’t think it’s that much.”
He went on to discuss how Santos manager Pedro Caixinha had worked with him previously when they were at Rangers, adding: “It came as a surprise this morning to be honest when my agent called me. [But] I love playing where I’m playing.
“Obviously when your contract is up and stuff like that, there’s always going to be talk like there always is. I’ve not spoken to or seen Pedro in a long time. But it is what it is, when you’re in form, this sort of stuff happens.”
However, that move didn’t come to fruition. In the end, they went for their former player, Neymar, who had just become available after having his contract at Al-Hilal terminated.
Reports suggested Neymar was ultimately second choice to Windass at the time, but Windass played that down, telling GiveMeSport: “I’ve seen all the stories, I’m not sure he [Neymar] was a back-up [for me], but I’ll keep running with it.”
Josh Windass can be a huge success at Wrexham, unless they sign Christian Eriksen
We’re backing Josh Windass to be Wrexham’s signing of the summer, and he should be able to make a real difference in the number 10 role behind the strikers this season.
He comes to the club with a point to prove and has been tipped to be a big player for Wrexham in 2025/26, but he’ll not be too happy with the latest links surrounding Christian Eriksen.
It’s thought the Red Dragons have approached Eriksen, who is a free agent right now. With both players largely operating as playmakers, Windass would surely end up frustrated playing second fiddle to the Danish star.