Wrexham

Abi Cole
BBC Sport Wales

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Phil Parkinson says Wrexham must use their strong away form as the platform for a response when they face Birmingham City on Sunday (12:00 BST) in the Championship.

The Red Dragons travel to St Andrew's for what Parkinson described as "a massive game for obvious reasons", with Wrexham still chasing promotion.

Wrexham head into the weekend looking to recover from Tuesday night's heavy home defeat to Southampton, a result which saw them drop out of the play-off places after the Saints moved above them into sixth.

The 5-1 loss was Wrexham's heaviest of the season and their worst at home since the 7-2 defeat by Gateshead in 2011, with Parkinson admitting afterwards his side must get "back to basics" defensively.

But while the Southampton result was a major setback, Parkinson's message before the trip to Birmingham was that it cannot be allowed to overshadow the work Wrexham have done away from home this season.

Parkinson said Birmingham's recent run should not be taken lightly, despite a dip in results that has seen them lose their last three league games.

"They were probably really disappointed not to get at least a point last time out," he said of Birmingham's defeat by Ipswich.

"I think the Ipswich game was very competitive and [they were] unlucky not to get something from it."

Parkinson says his focus, however, is firmly on Wrexham's own standards after Tuesday's loss, with the priority now an improvement "all over the pitch" rather than becoming too distracted by Birmingham's form.

He believes there is enough evidence in Wrexham's recent away performances to suggest they can produce a response.

"Our away form's been brilliant apart from the Watford game," he said.

"We've done really well on our travels and it's making sure that we don't let Tuesday detract from that."

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The EFL has announced the fixtures for the 2026-27 season will be published at midday on Thursday, 25 June.

The first-round draws for the Carabao Cup and the Vertu Trophy will be made on the same day.

The new season will kick off on the weekend of August 7-9 with the first round of the Carabao Cup, and the opening fixtures in the Championship, League One and League Two will follow a week later on 14-16 August.

The first round of the Vertu Trophy will be played in the week commencing 21 September.

Wrexham will be hoping to return to the Championship play-off places when they visit Birmingham City on Sunday (12:00 BST).

Phil Parkinson's side have a chance to regain sixth place if rivals Southampton fail to win on Saturday.

Blues have proven to be a difficult side to beat for Wrexham in recent history but their fellow promoted club have not risen to the challenge of the Championship quite as they would have liked, losing their past three league games to fall to 16th.

• Since losing their first-ever league meeting with Wrexham in October 1979, Birmingham are now unbeaten in their past six against them (W3 D3).

• All three of Wrexham's league defeats against Birmingham have come in their three visits to St Andrew's, with the Red Dragons conceding 10 goals in the process.

• Birmingham City have picked up just four points in their past eight league games (W1 D1 L6), finding the net just four times in that run. At home, they have lost two of their past four (W1 D1), more than in their previous 41 combined (W29 D11 L1).

• Wrexham have won eight of their 20 away Championship games this season (D7 L5) and are only the third newly promoted side in the past eight seasons to achieve that total, along with Sunderland in the 2022-23 season (11) and Ipswich Town in the 2023-24 campaign (12).

• In the past two seasons, only Finn Azaz (41 - 23 goals, 18 assists) has been involved in more Championship goals than Josh Windass (35 - 25 goals, 10 assists), with the Wrexham man scoring 12 goals and assisting five this season.

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Former Wales international striker Malcolm Allen is confident Wrexham will still go on to secure a top six finish in the Championship.

The Dragons dropped to seventh as a result of Tuesday night's 5-1 loss at home to Southampton.

But speaking on BBC Radio Cymru's Y Coridor Ansicrwydd podcast, Allen says the defeat is a "big blow" but that they can bounce back when they face Birmingham City on Sunday (12:00 BST).

"They've got Birmingham City on Sunday, if they lose this one then they are out of the running, Hull are the only team they can catch," he said.

"I think Southampton will finish second as they have a game in hand and they need to play Ipswich.

"You look at the games Wrexham have left after Birmingham; Stoke at home, Oxford and Coventry away and then Middlesbrough at home. I say they need 12 points.

"With the games Hull have to play, I can't see them getting as many points.

"Wrexham will take it to the final game of the season - they will finish sixth and Hull will drop out."

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Wrexham will face Manchester United in a pre-season friendly at Helsinki's Olympic Stadium on Saturday, July 18.

The north Wales club last played United at San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium (above) in 2023, winning 3-1 as they prepared for life in League Two.

Currently pushing to secure a place in the Premier League for next season, this summer's meeting with the Red Devils will be Wrexham's first trip to the Finnish capital and it will take place a week after they face Wisla Krakow in Poland.

"We're delighted to confirm our match in Helsinki against Manchester United," said Wrexham chief executive Michael Williamson.

"It will be a great occasion, at a famous venue against an iconic opponent, and just as importantly a good test on the pitch as part of our pre-season preparations.

"We look forward to seeing our supporters in Finland and meeting new fans from the Nordic region too."

Wrexham - owned by Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac - will also travel again to America, where they will face Leeds United in Tampa, Florida on Saturday, July 25.

Phil Parkinson's side will then take on Liverpool in New York on Wednesday, July 29 before completing the trip against a fourth Premier League side, meeting Sunderland in Mac's home city Philadelphia on Sunday, August 2.

"Our pre-season programme has come together, with some great games planned both in Europe and the United States and promises to be an exciting summer for all involved," added Williamson.

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Wrexham will hold an in-house training game on Wednesday as they bid to get certain players up to full speed for the remainder of their Championship run-in.

The Red Dragons will utilise their pre-scheduled training day in the aftermath of Tuesday's 5-1 loss to Southampton, allowing fringe players additional minutes on the pitch ahead of the club's return to action at Birmingham City on Sunday (12:00 BST).

According to WhoScored.com, forward Jay Rodriguez - who was unavailable until late December due to a stress fracture - has played just 16 minutes of Championship football this season.

Bailey Cadamarteri and Davis Keillor-Dunn - who both joined late on in the January transfer window - have played only 27 and 70 minutes respectively in the league since moving to north Wales.

In midfield, Matty James returned to action as a substitute in the loss to Southampton after two months on the sidelines with a toe injury.

It is hoped James' fellow central midfielder Ben Sheaf - who sustained a medial ligament knee injury in February - could feature during his side's run-in.

In defence, Dan Scarr has made just two Championship starts in 2026 while Lewis Brunt's sole appearance since suffering a thigh injury at Middlesbrough on 25 October came in the FA Cup against Chelsea.

Ryan Barnett has been restricted to just three substitute appearances across all competitions since the turn of the year and is also among those who will likely benefit from additional minutes.

Goalkeeper Danny Ward has not featured in a competitive match for Wrexham or Wales since recovering from the elbow injury he sustained at Millwall on 30 August.

Elsewhere, left wing-back Liberato Cacace - who has been plagued by injuries since joining Wrexham from Empoli last summer - has not yet returned to training following his latest issue.

On the training match, manager Phil Parkinson said: "We'll look at Ben (Sheaf) tomorrow (Wednesday) because we're going to come in and have a practice game for the lads who need some football, because obviously the (Birmingham) game's not until Sunday.

"It's never great coming in when you've got beat, but unfortunately it's a scheduled day's training and we need to be in together as a group and reflect on this game and be ready to respond."

Defeat by Southampton saw Wrexham drop to seventh, two points behind the Saints who have a game in hand.

Ian Mitchelmore
BBC Sport Wales

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One hefty defeat will not define Wrexham's season.

But it's fair to say their emphatic 5-1 loss to Southampton at Stok Cae Ras was damaging as far as their Championship play-off hopes are concerned.

While there is no shame in being beaten by a Saints side now unbeaten in 16 games across all competitions, there were some concerning aspects to the defeat.

Phil Parkinson alluded to his side's lacklustre defending, particularly from set-pieces, as something that will need to be worked on before Sunday's trip to Birmingham City.

For all of Wrexham's growth this season, the fact the manager said his team have to go "back to basics" when it comes to the defensive side of things demonstrated just how frustrated he was on Tuesday night.

Tonda Eckert's men were mesmerising in spells, and the German boss has a squad that boasts heaps of talent at his disposal.

So in that regard, the Red Dragons could be forgiven for licking their wounds and swiftly putting the game behind them.

Ultimately, Wrexham's top six destiny is no longer in their own hands, but that should not take away from what has been a memorable campaign so far.

A glance at the likes of Leicester City, Sheffield United and West Bromwich Albion further down the table demonstrates just how incredibly well Wrexham have performed to even be in the mix for a play-off place.

And, with 15 points still to play for, the race for the top six is far from done and dusted.

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Phil Parkinson says Wrexham must get "back to the basics of defending" after his side shipped five goals against Southamton.

The Red Dragons dropped out of the Championship play-off places as a result of Tuesday night's 5-1 loss to the Saints - who leapfrogged Wrexham into sixth after securing a fourth successive Championship win.

Wrexham boss Parkinson says his side need to drastically improve defensively when they return to action against Birmingham City at St Andrew's on Sunday (12:00 BST).

"I think it's a night of reflection and getting back to basics for the weekend," said Parkinson.

"It's back to the drawing board tomorrow (Wednesday) when we come in as a staff. We've got to go down to St Andrew's and put in a back-to-basics performance to give us a chance of winning the game."

Defeat to Tonda Eckert's side was Wrexham's heaviest of the season and their worst on home soil since losing 7-2 to Gateshead in 2011.

Despite the setback, the Red Dragons remain in the hunt to challenge for a top-six place with five matches of the regular season still to play.

"This game can't define the season," added Parkinson.

"We've worked exceptionally hard to get in this position. We're in a very tough division as everybody knows.

"With five games to go, we've got to make sure we batten down the hatches as a group and come out with a response at the weekend."

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Wrexham goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo is now eligible to represent Nigeria after his international transfer from England was approved by Fifa.

Born in Camden to Nigerian parents, Okonkwo represented England at various youth levels including Under-18s during his time at Arsenal.

The 24-year-old joined Wrexham on loan in 2023 and spent the season at the Stok Cae Ras before making the move permanent in the summer of 2024.

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Phil Parkinson lauded the quality of Josh Windass after the forward's "top-class" goal in Wrexham's 2-2 draw with West Bromwich Albion.

The 32-year-old netted his 12th goal of the campaign across all competitions as the Red Dragons came from 2-0 down to earn a point against the Baggies at The Hawthorns on Friday.

"He's a player who can produce big moments and he's done that with a brilliant finish," Parkinson said of Windass.

"He backs himself, he really does, and that's 12 for the season.

"It was a really top-class goal, it really was, so I'm delighted with it."

Lewis O'Brien netted Wrexham's equalising goal against West Brom as his side moved back above next opponents Southampton into sixth place in the Championship.

And the midfielder echoed Parkinson's thoughts on Windass - adding that the team as a whole have done well to contribute in front of goal this term.

"His quality is fantastic. He'll give everything on the pitch and he does pop up with the moments that, when you do need them, he seems to always be that person at the moment that gets the goal and gets the assists or whatever it is," said O'Brien.

"We've got a quality side and I think if you look throughout the season, it's not just been one person scoring all the goals, getting all the assists. We're all chipping in here and there.

"I probably could have got a few more than I've got at the moment, but I think we're all just trying our hardest to push Wrexham where we want to be."

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Phil Parkinson says it is "game on" for Wrexham in their promotion run-in as they prepare to return to home soil after three successive away matches.

The Red Dragons claimed four points from their fixtures at Watford, Sheffield United and West Bromwich Albion to keep themselves in the mix for a play-off spot in the Championship.

Their 2-2 draw with the Baggies at The Hawthorns lifted Parkinson's men back up to sixth ahead of Tuesday's meeting with Southampton at Stok Cae Ras (20:00 BST), although the Saints have a game in hand.

"We'll take the point. If you look, before we played Watford, there were nine games to go, six away, three at home," said the Wrexham manager.

"I think people would have probably been looking at that thinking 'wow, that's going to be a tough challenge for Wrexham'.

"We got beaten at Watford, we beat Sheffield United and we drew here (at West Brom). We go into the last six games, three at home and three away, and it's game on."

Wrexham lost 3-2 to the Baggies in their opening home league game of the 2025-26 season.

Parkinson feels his side's fightback from two goals down against James Morrison's side, who are now unbeaten in five games, shows how far the Red Dragons have come since the early days of their return to the second tier.

"We have to appreciate where we've come from," added Parkinson.

"We're coming to West Brom competing in the top six while West Brom are at the bottom end of the table. That's a great credit to everyone at the club.

"Now the aim is to give absolutely everything in these final six games to finish the season off strongly."

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Phil Parkinson says Wrexham will face a West Bromwich Albion side "scrapping for their lives" when they meet at the Hawthorns in the Championship on Friday.

While Wrexham are looking to maintain their play-off push, West Brom are battling at the other end of the table.

The Baggies are four points above the relegation zone after four games unbeaten, and Parkinson says Wrexham will have to be ready against a team that won 3-2 at the Stok Cae Ras last August when Ryan Mason was their head coach.

"If you look at West Brom, early in the season they were riding high at the top of the table, then they had a really poor run," Parkinson said.

"They lost 10 successive away games, by very tight margins.

"I watched a few of those games and I thought Ryan Mason and Nigel Gibbs, the assistant, were very unlucky not to still be there at that point because the performances weren't far away.

"But that's the division, it's very tight, dividing lines as everyone's spoken about.

"And now another manager, James Morrison, has taken over and has got them going again.

"They're a good side and obviously they've found themselves down at the bottom and they're scrapping for their lives and we've got to be ready for that, but we will be."