Phil Parkinson's side have hit a rough patch, but is there really anything to worry about?
"You try and focus on yourselves, but there’s all these apps out there now on your phone, so it is easy to look at the table and the form of all the teams. You just have to be really disciplined and focus on yourself and each game as it comes. I know that’s boring and a cliche, but it is true."
That was Wrexham midfielder Jordan Tunnicliffe's neat summation of the pulsating League Two promotion battle, provided in the wake of his side's 1-0 defeat to Gillingham on Saturday. Since Christmas, the momentum in that particular fight has shifted from team to team regularly.
Now, provided Barrow don't piece together something quite spectacular over the next few weeks, it appears that there are five runners left in the race for automatic promotion: leaders Mansfield Town, Stockport, Crewe Alexandra, Wrexham and MK Dons, with just five points separating those teams from top to bottom.
It's good news for the neutral, with League Two set for one of the tensest run-ins for years. But in truth, Phil Parkinson's side have to regard the last few weeks as a missed opportunity to properly establish themselves in pole position in the race to League One.
GettyA concerning dip in form
That's because Wrexham are currently in the midst of a concerning dip in form. Defeat in Kent this weekend means Parkinson's charges have now won just twice in their last seven league games. There's no reason to smash the panic button just yet, this run did included a fantastic – if slightly fortunate – victory over last season's rivals Notts County after all.
But this New Year's lull has also included disappointing defeats to Newport County, Salford and Bradford City – all teams marooned in the bottom half of the League Two table. Wrexham were far from convincing against struggling Sutton too, requiring an 85th-minute winner to get past the division's basement dwellers.
They aren't the only League Two promotion hopefuls who have hit a sticky patch, though. Stockport looked dead certs for promotion before Christmas, but they are now winless in four, opening the door for Crewe and Mansfield to romp up the standings.
But that shouldn't excuse Wrexham's poor form. Dig a little deeper and there are several underlying issues that will offer Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney cause for concern as the season draws to a close.
AdvertisementGettyPaul Mullin not at his best
The startling underperformance of Paul Mullin is one such red flag. Mullin has scarcely stopped finding the back of the net since arriving from Cambridge United in a blockbuster deal back in 2021. But recently, nothing has been falling for him.
Mullin has now not scored in seven games, with Parkinson even taking the shocking decision to drop him for recent matches against Sutton, MK Dons and Gillingham. The first time it happened, the Wrexham boss was diplomatic, describing it as a chance for the "special" striker to rest up following a draining few seasons.
But, explaining Mullin's absences more recently, Parkinson said: "The squad is important and we will just keep looking at that, and freshen it up if we feel we need to." Those comments came ahead of the Gillingham defeat, and the fact that Mullin only came on in the second half in that one seems to suggest that his manager is not completely satisfied with his star man's performances this season.
Getty ImagesElliot Lee struggling too
Not all the blame can be laid at Mullin's door, though. Elliot Lee has also fallen into a bit of a funk. When Mullin was out injured at the beginning of the season, Lee stepped up to the plate, emerging as Parkinson's most-important attacking performer.
He raced to 13 League Two goals before Christmas, but since then his output has dried up considerably. Indeed, he's only managed one strike since Boxing Day, despite featuring in each of his side's 11 subsequent games. It was an important goal at least: the winner in his side's victory over Sutton earlier this month.
Like Mullin, Lee found himself relegated to the bench for his side's draw with MK Dons, and the pair's dips in form coinciding almost exactly with when they were handed new, long-term contracts is particularly unfortunate. As is the fact that their attacking team-mates have been unable to fill the void left by their lack of goals.
January signing Jack Marriott is yet to make the net bulge in six appearances, Sam Dalby seems unlikely to ever be properly prolific at this level, while Ollie Palmer – a key figure last season – seems to have fallen out of favour. Steven Fletcher has at least started 2024 strongly, but he hasn't done quite enough to arrest Wrexham's underwhelming form in front of goal.
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GettyA lack of discipline
Widening the lens across the whole season, another worrying trend comes into view. Namely, Wrexham's lack of discipline. No League Two side has picked up more straight red cards than them (four) over the course of the season, with the Red Dragons seeing six players sent off in total. Only Salford and Forest Green – both faltering at the foot of the table – have a worse dismissal record overall.
Impressively, Wrexham have still managed to win three of the games in which they were reduced to 10 men, but their luck has run out since the turn of the year. Back in January, Will Boyle's early red card for a reckless challenge against Newport County left them with a mountain to climb, and their Welsh rivals went on to win the game 1-0, depriving their opponents of the chance to go top of League Two.
And then against MK Dons, Boyle again saw red, this time 13 minutes from time. It wasn't quite as damaging, with their hosts being reduced to 10 men themselves earlier in the second half, though it did take the sting out of their attack as Wrexham pushed for a winner.
In reaction to this latest dismissal, Parkinson bemoaned what he perceives as harsh treatment from referees this season, after MK Dons boss Mike Williamson suggested the media darlings are treated more leniently than their rivals. "I've been constantly this season going through clips of decisions we could have got, penalties or red cards which were harsh against us, but over the course of the season you've got to accept it and it balances itself out."
Parkinson does have a point in some ways; several of these red cards do seem harsh on second viewing. Then again, some of them been deserved, and Wrexham need to make sure they keep their heads and have 11 players on the pitch at all times during the run-in.