Wrexham ’s pre-season was majorly implicated by Premier League giants Arsenal and Liverpool both scrapping friendly plans against the League One side.
Following back-to-back promotions to the third-tier of the English pyramid, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney would have been hoping the club’s trip to the United States would have been the perfect beginning to a massive League One campaign. But it failed to go to plan due to last-minute decisions from the Champions League duo.
Wrexham earned brilliant draws against Bournemouth and Chelsea in California and, according to the Daily Mail , they were set to face Mikel Arteta’s Premier League runners-up. However, it is claimed that Arteta insisted on scrapping the idea of playing Wrexham after mulling over the Gunners’ pre-season calendar.
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Arteta is said to have wanted the team to stay in Los Angeles, where they were preparing to play Manchester United , and not travel any further. Arsenal were set to face Wrexham in a different US state before the club hierarchy agreed with Arteta and the Gunners switched opponents to take on Bournemouth instead.
Arsenal’s withdrawal meant Wrexham missed out on another huge pre-season friendly clash in the States, where they have been cashing in on the popularity of their Prime documentary series ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ starring their Hollywood owners.
Liverpool had previously knocked Wrexham’s pre-season preparations after the Anfield club were said to have pulled out of a behind-closed-doors friendly with the League One side before both clubs flew to America, according to Wrexham podcast RobRyanRed. The schedule change saw Wrexham thrash out a last-minute game against eighth-tier Northern Premier League West side Hanley Town.
"We had a game organized against a Premier League club behind closed doors at their training ground which they pulled out of because of complications with their pre-season tour," Parkinson previously said. "We had to quickly arrange an alternative and we went to Hanley, looked at the pitch and spoke to the owner."
Wrexham’s North America tour ended in Vancouver as they beat MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps 4-1 before returning home to the Racecourse Ground, winning 1-0 against League Two club Fleetwood Town. The Red Dragons’ season gets underway on Saturday at home against Wycombe Wanderers before they travel to newly-relegated Championship outfit Sheffield United in the first round of the EFL Cup on Tuesday.
Phil Parkinson was realistic about his side’s chances in League One, saying they will enjoy being underdogs after mounting expectations in recent seasons following the Hollywood takeover. “We’ve got more of an underdog feel because you're competing against your Birminghams and your Boltons and teams like that who have got huge spending power,” Parkinson said.
“We’ll enjoy playing that underdog card at times because it’s one we can use to our benefit. Yes, there is expectation on us, but the only expectation I’ve got on the players is that we maintain standards and we play in a way which reflects on how we’ve done over the last few years. I think also there’s a sense of realism as well, that the supporters know we are going into a tough division with a lot of big-spending clubs.”
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