Wrexham have one signing to their names already this summer. A slow start maybe, but there’s still plenty of time for new faces to arrive.
The summer transfer window closes on September 1st this summer. There’s still three whole months for Wrexham and Phil Parkinson to do business, though fans are impatient and want new faces early doors.
Thankfully we have one in. Wrexham have signed Ryan Hardie to get their summer business underway, with the striker joining from Plymouth Argyle in time for the return to pre-season.
The players have returned for pre-season testing and next month, Wrexham go on a pre-season tour of Australia and New Zealand, in what will be another exciting venture for the players.
Right now, Wrexham are linked with several new players and we could yet see one or two sign before the trip down under. For Parkinson that might even be preferable as he’ll want all the players together as early as possible.
But one player who is looking less and less likely to move to the Racecourse this summer is Lewis O’Brien.
Lewis O’Brien keen to join Wrexham’s Championship rivals this summer
Wrexham have been linked with a move for O’Brien who now looks set to leave Nottingham Forest on a permanent deal this summer. The 26-year-old has failed to hold down a regular spot at the City Ground following his 2022 move from Nottingham Forest, having been sent out on loan multiple times.
The Englishman spent the second half of last season on loan at Swansea City, and already, O’Brien has hinted he’d be keen to return to Swansea this summer. Now, Hull Live report that O’Brien ‘is believed to be keen’ on a move to Hull City, which is ‘closer to his West Yorkshire home’.
Hull City have recently been linked with O’Brien, and with more and more teams showing an interest, including Carlos Corberan’s Valencia among others, a move to Wrexham has become very unlikely, very quickly.
How much Wrexham would have to pay to sign Lewis O’Brien this summer
Last January, Wrexham smashed their club record transfer by bringing in Sam Smith from Reading in a £2million deal.
And whilst Parkinson will look for loan signings and free transfers this summer, it seems almost inevitable that Wrexham will break their record transfer again this summer, perhaps multiple times too.
There have been suggestions that O’Brien would cost £5million this summer. But Hull Live’s above report states that those suggestions are wide of the mark.
Forest signed O’Brien as part of a double deal worth £10million at the time. Given how he’s surplus to requirements at the club, and how Forest are surely desperate to sell him given he’s out of contract next summer, we could assume that the asking price is well below £5million.
Affordable for Wrexham, certainly. But with so much competition and O’Brien looking elsewhere, a deal feels unlikely as things stand.