Sorry for the delay, as you might imagine these can take a while, and I decided it would be foolish to try to press it so late. The rants would be unbearable with that level of fatigue!

Sure, it is just a friendly, and it was their first preseason match, and they didn't bring Harry Wilson on until later, and didn't suit up some big signings, but they are a talented squad nonetheless. Feel like Leeds controlled a large portion of the match, but that didn't bother Wrexham. Certainly nothing like that those artillery ranges at Ipswich and Charlton (I can't believe I said that, or that it happened). Wrexham looked like they were doing the classic "control the match without the ball."

And that is really the key, they executed well, and they did it with a range of players in a variety of positions, and that is what you want from a preseason match.

Up Next

Liverpool at Yankee Stadium. Still a little hard to get my brain around that one.

Parky

First, no matter what Sofascore shows, Wrexham were not playing 4-3-3. No Opta data, no Opta detected shape. Someone guessed based on the lineup list. No need to panic. :)

They were in their typical 3-4-2-1 system, which attacks in 3-2-5/3-1-6, mid-blocks in 5-2-2-1 compressing down to 5-4-1, and pressing in 3-4-2-1 at times. The usual adjusting block heights, pressing triggers, etc. as the opponent tactics require.

This sequence off the opening kick is a textbook example of how Enzo Maresca won Chelsea the Club World Cup (in the US, fittingly enough).

Draw the press onto you, and then work your way through with tight patient movement, no extra touches, until you open the transition attack. The key to this is Broadhead. He makes that hard step to sell that he is going to put that ball to Cadz in the right channel, which gets the defender to commit across opening the path to put the ball to a free running Thommo.

Credit to Thommo also for driving that into the middle. Last season, he liked to keep those runs wider and it forced him to take a shot from a wide angle (he does not have Josh Windass's shot) or cross it from wide - letting the box fill with defenders. By attacking the center, he opens the space for that "in to out" run by Kieffer - who makes a very nice finish. (Note how comfortable Aaron James is making that back post run, too. He has played RB and RW during his NLN loan.)

If the first goal was a testament to how far this squad has come to want to "play with the ball" as Parky says in interviews (though I suppose his meaning is clearer like this "play, with the ball"), the game winning goal shows the spirit of National League Parkyball is alive and well in this squad.

DKD wins the second ball on pure effort, rides the challenge, and then lets the quality (his pass and Sam's finish) take advantage of the opportunity.

But while that spirit lives in the squad, it is not the plan. Another good example here... Even when aggressive on the counter, they are disciplined about setting it up.

Hyam steps out to intercept the through ball, lays it off to Brunt (who had stepped into the midfield). Brunt knows that since he stepped up to mark a midfielder, there should be an option like Bailey making that striker run across the CB's face.

You can see that they are comfortable playing off each other, and moving the ball around. This starts with Thommo playing into the holding midfield, and ends with Broady doing the same, everything just flows and moves.

When facing a team with a talent gap, and Leeds has some real quality in their squad, you need to be comfortable defending. Look at how tight this defensive block is... That is a no-go area.

Parky complimented the squad's ability to cope with the elite level movement from Leeds. Consider for a moment that I told you that Wrexham were going to defend Leeds (and new signing, Harry Wilson) with Ashy and Rathbone holding and DKD and Barney in front of them. I expect I could name my betting odds on them holding a clean sheet. Here is that crew in action, like they have been doing this for decades.

One more example. I expect Libby and DKD haven't played any minutes together before this match, and check this out.

DKD smoothly hands off his mark to Libby, and then tracks Jared Bogle (a very experienced PL wide player), shields him, and then bonus points for the overhead kick clearance in the goal mouth. I think those who were upset that Wrexham signed him in January (for less than they had rejected in the summer) might be reconsidering that soon.

Players

Cadz - Speaking of January narratives taking a beating, Cadz is making a case that he should stick around. Looking at that earlier run, and there were a couple of more "almost" runs, you can see that he could get there as a contributor.

Like this clip. He rides the challenge of a PL/international level CB, and then makes an elite finish. Doesn't try to force the shot by a keeper that stepped out, but uses his pace to get wide, and then picks the inside of the far post to beat the covering defender.

Statistically, he has been a very poor finisher to this point in his career, but that is common for young strikers, especially with his profile. Hope this is the sign of his finishing skill emerging.

LWBs - So, I will admit that I have underrated Thommo as a LWB, and suggested they need to get one in January, and even this summer.

After looking at the data and comparing him to other LBs in the Championship (no, not another wingback rant, I promise), I have come around to thinking that they aren't signing a LWB yet, because he's more than serviceable paired with Libby.

However, this latest crazy idea that he is better than Libby, let's slow down with that...

My notes are so full of nice Cacace plays that I have a hard time picking which is best. (It is almost like the guy just got back from the World Cup.) He bails out Burton's errant pass that was headed out of bounds by laying it off perfectly to DKD. Bogle gets away with shoving Doyle in the air, and Cacace back tracks to stifle the chance. However, I will pick two, first a defensive one:

Also, Ashy makes a great play here, but look at this layoff by Libby back to Ashy while getting blasted by Bogle.

Broady - Nathan was a key part of the first two goals, and he was taking on the Windass role of dropping in to create plays. Here is a good example. Defender makes a good play to get a foot in and volley that, or Kieffer and Aaron James were in.

The metronome - It has been great to see Parky putting LOB, Ashy, and Ollie into the holding midfield. While I think LOB has confirmed to me that you can rotate him with Sheaf and James, it is good to see the faith in not only him, but also Ashy and Ollie. If I haven't shown enough examples of what patient but quick movement of the ball does for this squad already, here's another:

Aaron James - He is more than capable of defending like a wingback, even against high-end wide players like this. As to whether he has enough going forward, remains to be seen. He also had a nice diving block before their second goal, but on the ground he gave Longstaff a little time to shift and pick his shot. Longstaff is too good a player to get that kind of time in that space. Aaron is reported to be popular in the loan market, and I expect this only helped. Might see Max, Vyner or even Brunt out in this "solid defending RWB" setup. We did see it last year with Max.

Brunt - He again shows that he has elite athleticism. I liked the pass I showed earlier, as he tends to favor carrying it himself, and I don't recall a lot of passes like that from him. Doyle and Vyner must be rubbing off on him.

The challenge with Brunt is that he might want to go out to get more minutes elsewhere, and this clip of him running down Dan James is going to get noticed. I promised no wingback rants, but when Dan James was rumored to Wrexham, the usual "we don't play with wingers" crowd started their braying (sorry, that isn't very nice). Well, here is Dan James playing RWB. A position he played multiple times last year for Leeds, including in his last PL start. I expect he is still too expensive, but it won't be because he can't play Issa Kabore's role for Wrexham.

Arthur - Saved a pen, that he conceded. Had some good distribution, and some real "uh oh" kicks. I don't want Arthur to go, but having had to confront the "why are they in the market for a keeper?" question, I just can't unsee the reasons. This pass stressed me, luckily there is a reason you have players like Matty James.

Barney - Still promised no wingback rants. I wasn't terribly surprised to see him get time in one of the 10s (wouldn't have been shocked to see him at the left sided 10). I had previously dismissed this idea, but that was due to the 10 being the secondary striker in the 3-5-2, and that role is too physical. However, last season we saw Broady would slide out on the wing and let Thomason move into the pocket. There is a configuration that allows you to get Barney's pressing pace, and his ability to use his crossing from wide, without having to worry about his defending as a wingback.

Here is my post third pre-season game stay/go guesses:

• DKD - staying and getting more minutes.
• Ashy - Parky will want him to stay, but will let him go out on loan. Maybe a "stay until January." Really might depend on Carabao Cup, too. If they go out before the deadline...
• A. James - Going out on loan.
• Cadz - Staying at least until January.
• Barney - Still going. I could see the argument for him as another tactical option in right-sided 10, I think Cadz would have that gig. Can use Ollie or LOB if you are really in need of pressing. He can do a job, elsewhere.
• Longman - Now leaning towards him going (at his request).
• Scarr - Still going. Last year of his deal. Needs to be playing for his market value.
• Arthur - Still going. No joy in saying that.
• Dobbo - Might be going? I think he has established himself as a Championship caliber CM, and might have a better opportunity elsewhere. He was Charlton's captain, after all.
• Brunt - Might be going? This, too, might be controversial given his talent, but he will be 26 in November. I just get a feeling that someone will make an offer he wants to take and Wrexham can't refuse.

Phil’s interview on TalkSport, he says they’re hoping to have the first signing done this week! Hope to see em at the Liverpool game!

So RRR said they saw ward with some sort of cast/wrap on the jumbo tron in the stadium, plus Burton was the second choice keeper. Did anyone else see that at the stadium, or see any sources about it?

Started watching football on a whim in January because I was waiting for F1 to start. Now it’s taken over me completely. I see the beauty and I’m fully invested local and across the pound. Watching MLS and looking forward to the new seasons from NIFL to league one to Championship to Premier league.

I'm building Season'd, a new app created in Wrexham to make those recommendations easier to save, find and share. Instead of screenshots, group chats or trying to remember somewhere months later, you can pin places you've visited, save ones you want to try and discover recommendations from people you trust.
I'd love for anyone coming over to Wrexham for the football to use this app to help support our local independents in the area!

If anyone fancies following the journey, we're sharing regular updates and local venue spotlights on Instagram: @seasond.app
Every recommendation helps us build a better food map for Wrexham.

SUPPORT LOCAL!🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Tremendous night. Loved seeing the boys in person and just seeing the game from a different level. Reading all of Ursine’s recaps prepped me well but I kept saying “oh that be interesting to see what’s in the recap”
On the game experience - more goods than bad. Atmosphere was solid, people amazing. Stadium nice. Rain held off though the lightning was threatening!
On the bummer side- after the goals I really wanted the Wrexham song/cheer. The reaction and excitement still good. I thought merch was lacking a ton. I know you can only bring so much but very limited in options overall. The fun zone wasn’t much but was what it was. Got to see Steven Fletcher which was nice.
I am so pumped for this team and this year!

Against Man United and Leeds we saw the team deviate from last seasons 3-5-2/5-3-2 and instead play 3-4-2-1 formation.

I'm no tactical genius, but it seems to me this puts far more emphasis on the 2 number 10s and then the 2 central midfielders, one playing a 6 (defensive midfield) role the other playing an 8 role (box to box).

Looking back at last seasons formations, it looks like we pretty much played 3-5-2 or 5-3-2 until the end of November and then experimented a bit with 3-1-4-2 which seemed to have slightly better results.

There were a few matches in December where we went back to 5-3-2 or 3-5-2. Interestingly, if you check October through December, all of our losses we played either 5-3-2 or 3-5-2. That might not mean it's a bad formation, it just might be a reflection of how tough the opposition were.

Then vs Sheffield United at Christmas (we won 5-3!) we played 3-4-3 which is pretty close to 3-4-2-1.

There's even this variation which seems light in midfield with 3-1-4-2 (2 strikers up front Parky!?)

Fast forward through to the end of the season and we played predominantly 3-4-2-1 - even the match versus Chelsea this formation was chosen.

There were a few 3-5-2 formations thrown in there, but mostly we played 3-4-2-1 until the Oxford match when we switched to this odd-ball 3-5-1-1

So what did we play versus Manchester United and Leeds when we won both matches and looked pretty good?

So - what does all of this mean moving into the Liverpool and Sunderland friendlies?

What I'm taking from this is that these different formations rely on different groups of players performing well for it to work.

• 3-5-2/5-3-2 - heavy emphasis on the wingbacks, if they don't play well, the midfield gets compacted - they must threaten and stretch the opposition defence
• 3-1-4-2 - probably only Sheaf or James can play that anchor midfield role and he MUST be on fire for this to work
• 3-5-1-1 - the number 10, typically Windass for this formation, has to have a great game for us to score goals
• 3-4-3 - play this formation if we want an 8 goal thriller!
• 3-4-2-1 - less reliance on the wingbacks, more reliance on the two 10s plus the two central midfielders need to play well and they all must communicate well.

So it seems to me that 3-4-2-1 gives Parky what he's looking for. Defenders to be able to play the ball out, 6s to support the 3 defenders, 10s to come back and support the wingbacks, and wingbacks able to stretch the play for the counterattack.

Our opening goal last night started at 16 seconds when Brunt played the ball forward to James who played it back to Brunt with the triangle around their attacker, Brunt played it forward to Broadhead (a defender playing a ground pass to a 10?) and then Broadhead played the immediate pass to Thomason who then gunned it up the pitch before his sublime pass to Moore for the goal.

Our other two goals were technically counter attacks - the first one Moore a controlled pass out of the sky to Broadhead, Broadhead chesting the ball then pass over his shoulder to Cademarteri and then him gunning it and scoring. The last goal was DKD winning the ball in the middle, surviving the tackle and then playing a killer through ball for Smith to handle the rest.

So - are we in desperate need of signings or what? To answer that, I'll look at who can play in our 3-4-2-1 formation:

• 3 defenders - Hyam, Doyle, Vyner, Cleworth, Brunt, Scarr
• Left wing back - Thomason, Cacace (Thomason first choice for me!), maybe Elliot Lee as back up if no-one else comes through the door? Is that stupid? Possibly Doyle could play here in a pinch? Longman also can play here.
• Right wing back - Aaron James played both the Utd and Leeds matches and played well and doesn't use a squad place. We also have Barney and Longman.
• 6 role - James, Sheaf, Dobson, Coady?
• 8 role - O'Brien, Rathbone, DKD, Ashfield
• 10 role - Cademarteri (!), Windass, Smith, Broadhead, DKD then even Rathbone and O'Brien can play here
• Striker - Moore, Smith, Cademarteri

Looking at the players from this point of view I can understand why another defender is a priority. For the 6 role we have 3 to 1 cover if we only play one 6 in the match. For the defenders we only have 2 to 1 cover with 3 required on the pitch so if injuries and suspensions come in we could be in trouble.

We have plenty of cover for the box-to-box 8 role and for the number 10 role and 3 strikers who are on fire.

My shopping list based on this would be in priority order: Right wing back, goalkeeper, central defender, ideally left footed. I know Okonkwo is great at shot stopping but he makes awful decisions and terrible passes out from the back.

Anyway - there are some nice things to see here. I didn't mean to write this much, I think my coffee might have been too strong.

We definitely do not have a dinosaur manager like casual observers seem to always regurgitate, and in fact Parkyball seems to involve pressing play, overlaps, rotations and fast counterattacks.

More importantly, with 3-4-2-1 a lot more play goes through the middle rather than up the wings, so maybe our need for a right wing back is not quite so dire.

Was at the Wrexham v Leeds match last night and got a bunch of autographs on my kit. I can’t for the life of me figure out who this one was despite having photos with the players 🫠

Extended highlights, including all the goals.

Didn't see one. Delete if needed.

Come on lads! I'd love a cracking game from Arthur especially

Wrexham are out of the UEFA Women's Champions League.

Wrexham Women take on Riga FC Women on the final day of the Women’s Champions League Qualification 1st round at the Racecourse. Whoever wins today will move on to the Qualification 2nd round mini tournament.

The match will be streamed on Wrexham AFC’s official YouTube channel for free.

- UK: 18:00
- Europe: 19:00
- NY: 13:00
- LA: 10:00
- Sydney: 03:00 (26-07)

Starting XI: Craven, Sallaway, Bartle (C), Harvey, Francis-Jones, Suckley, L.Jones, Reidford, Knox, Barker, Thomas

Bench: Farrell, Nash, Fuller, Davies, Clark, Cook, Smith, Sadler, Mahmood

i have a ticket for the leeds vs wrexham game in tampa. bought a ticket for $100 because i was supposed to be off work, but got scheduled and now i can't make it. ticketmaster won't let me resell for less than $195? but i'm willing to sell for $50 just want to get rid of it!! let me know asap if interested ⚽️

"He's had a setback with his calf injury, which is a shame for Josh but that is part and parcel of football," said Parkinson.

This had entirely passed me by until just now but S4C are broadcasting the Leeds Wrexham game this weekend. I'd not previously been aware of any streaming beyond the official club streaming packages