Fine-tuning and a clear target - Wrexham's season aim

Little more than three months after their play-off tilt was ended in agonising fashion, Wrexham are set to reignite their bid to reach the promised land of the Premier League.

The Red Dragons' season started in disappointing fashion as they were beaten 1-0 by Middlesbrough in the first round of the Carabao Cup.

But the bread and butter of the Championship is undoubtedly the prime focus, and Phil Parkinson's side start their 2026-27 league campaign at Cardiff City on Monday (20:00 BST).

The north Wales side will hope their efforts last term - their first campaign in the second tier since 1981-82 - will stand them in good stead as they bid to go one better this time around.

As has always been the case during the remarkable ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac to date, new faces have arrived while other key figures - including icon Paul Mullin - have left the Racecourse Ground.

But where do they stand in their quest to complete their dream of rising from the National League to the top flight?

In ending the 2025-26 campaign in seventh, Wrexham secured their highest-ever finish.

Their efforts were helped by the addition of 13 first team signings in the summer of 2025, which has ensured the club do not need to be so heavily active in the current transfer window.

Full-back Danny Imray has arrived from Crystal Palace and central midfielder Ben Whiteman joined from Championship rivals Preston North End.

In an additional boost, Wrexham have also completed a big-money move to bring in goalkeeper Anthony Patterson from Sunderland.

It is hoped the fine-tuning - with a few more incomings expected - will help the club be more consistent and have the ability to shift up a gear when required.

Scoring goals was not an issue for Wrexham last season.

Only five teams - Coventry City, Ipswich Town, Southampton, Middlesbrough and Hull City, who all finished in the top six - scored more than Wrexham's 69 league goals.

Parkinson's men were impressively efficient too.

Their conversion rate of 13.24% was bettered only by Hull (13.42%) and Derby County (13.29%).

Wrexham also outperformed their expected goals (xG) figure by 12.21, more than any other side in the second tier.

Off the field, the new 7,500-seater Kop Stand is due to be completed next year.

Wrexham's revenue is also expected to jump significantly from around £33.3m in 2024-25 to between £46m and £50m for the year ending June 2026.

It means, despite having gained three promotions across the past four seasons, everything remains geared towards building for even bigger and better things in the future.

Former Wales international Nia Jones told the BBC's Feast of Football podcast: "Wrexham will have learnt a lot after missing out on the play-offs last season.

"The fact they went back to back to back put a lot of pressure on them and put them even more in the spotlight.

"They were the team to beat, the team that everyone wanted to play their best players against and wanted to make the documentary and the highlight reel.

"So now they have stayed in the same league, hopefully it puts them a little bit more under the radar, and they'll have less pressure on them."

Wrexham's proficiency in front of goal was crucial as their defensive record was something of a concern.

Only five teams conceded more than Wrexham's tally of 65 goals. Two of those sides - Sheffield Wednesday and Leicester City - were relegated.

Just six sides made more than Wrexham's 29 errors leading to a shot, while Sheffield Wednesday, Hull and Swansea City were the only teams to face more than the 203 shots on target the Red Dragons faced.

Parkinson's men also conceded two or more goals in 22 of their 46 league games.

Injuries to first choice wing-backs Issa Kabore and Liberato Cacace did not help, nor did the regular changing of the back three in the opening half of the season.

Things settled as the campaign progressed, with the likes of Callum Doyle and Dom Hyam impressing, while midfielder George Thomason performed admirably as a makeshift left wing-back.

A fully-fit Imray should ease any worries on the right flank, although some concerns remain on the left.

An upgrade in between the sticks was also key given the mixed fortunes of Arthur Okonkwo and Danny Ward.

Parkinson handed Patterson, 26, his professional debut at Sunderland in November 2020 just weeks before leaving the Stadium of Light.

The goalkeeper won two promotions with the Black Cats and played a key role in helping Millwall reach the play-offs last season during a loan spell with the Lions, so has plenty of experience to hit the ground running in north Wales.

Given the vast leap from League One to the Championship, Wrexham were - early on, at least - publicly coy on their aims to reach the play-offs last term.

Their lofty ambitions swiftly became evident to outsiders as performances and results improved - with players going on to make no secret of the club's desire to finish in the top six.

It will be similar this time around, although, unlike last season, the target is abundantly clear to everyone internally and externally from the outset.

"The aim is to finish higher than last season," said defender Zak Vyner.

"To do what we did in the middle-to-back-end of the season where we picked up a lot of points and had a right go and just build on what was a positive end to the season with a disappointing finish."

An intriguing campaign awaits, and the expansion of the play-offs presents an opportunity.

It is one Wrexham will feel they are more than capable of taking.