Wrexham landed a new midfielder on transfer deadline day as Ben Sheaf arrived – but one target slipped through the net.
Wrexham racked up 13 signings over the course of the summer and even found time to bring in a new face two days after the transfer deadline.
Goalkeeper Reuben Egan finished off Wrexham’s business, with Phil Parkinson almost completely revolutionising his squad.
Three of those additions were central midfielders, as Ben Sheaf joined Wrexham on deadline day, joining Lewis O’Brien and George Thomason at the STōK Cae Ras.
Sheaf arrived in a big-money move, but only after Wrexham seemingly missed out on another midfield addition.
West Ham United’s Andy Irving snubbed Leicester City and Wrexham
Wrexham were also keen on Andy Irving, who has struggled for first-team football at West Ham United.
The Scot emerged as a goalscoring midfield star with Austria Klagenfurt, but regular playing time in the Premier League has eluded him to date.
Reports suggested that Wrexham were struggling to land Irving, with wages believed to be the hold-up at the time.
Irving then snubbed Wrexham ahead of the deadline, with a potential £3.5million move unable to be resurrected.
The Athletic now claim that both Wrexham and Leicester City wanted Irving, but he rejected both clubs.
The reason given is that Irving ‘did not want to drop to the Championship’, so he snubbed both sides ahead of the transfer deadline.
Wrexham moved on and landed Sheaf, though the former Arsenal man is a very different type of midfielder.
Sheaf will slot right in at the base of Wrexham’s midfield, whereas Irving would have provided major goal threat in the final third.
Perhaps Parkinson will return for Irving in January – especially as his first-team prospects have actually taken another hit.
- READ MORE: Official Wrexham statement confirms multiple players axed from Phil Parkinson’s Championship squad
Andy Irving’s Premier League hopes have taken another blow
Irving didn’t want to drop into the Championship, potentially believing that he could break into Graham Potter’s West Ham side.
The 25-year-old has only played 24 minutes of top-flight action across the first three weeks of the season, and he has now seen West Ham invest in new midfielders.
Mateus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa have arrived from Southampton and Monaco respectively, with the Hammers forking out more than £55million for the duo.
Tomas Soucek, Guido Rodriguez, Freddie Potts, James Ward-Prowse and Wrexham target George Earthy are also vying for first-team action.
Irving may need to reconsider his future again in January, though whether Wrexham maintain an interest remains to be seen.