Wrexham A.F.C. have added a surprise friendly to their competitive season schedule, facing Wigan Athletic in a behind-closed-doors match next week. The Red Dragons returned from their U.S. preseason tour on Sunday night after a 1–0 defeat to Sunderland in Philadelphia. League standing (final 2025 table -- new season not yet under way): 7th in Championship, 71 pts, 19W-14D-13L from 46 games, recent form DLWWL. Phil Parkinson’s side will welcome their players back to training in midweek before Wrexham travel to Middlesbrough for their Carabao Cup first-round tie on Friday night.
What happened?
Wrexham A.F.C. will face Wigan Athletic in a behind-closed-doors friendly next week, giving Phil Parkinson’s side one final opportunity to build match fitness ahead of the new Championship season.
Why it matters for Wrexham A.F.C.
The friendly against Wigan Athletic has a lot of importance as Wrexham A.F.C. need to make sure they have another block of minutes in the players' legs before the Cardiff City match on August 17.
What comes next?
Wrexham A.F.C. will face Wigan Athletic in a behind-closed-doors friendly next week, and then they will travel to Middlesbrough for their Carabao Cup first-round tie on Friday night.
Wrexham A.F.C. went unbeaten through their first three preseason matches, drawing with Wisła Kraków before beating Manchester United and Leeds United. The Red Dragons then suffered narrow defeats to both Liverpool and Sunderland to bring their official preseason schedule to a close. Reflecting on the club’s third U.S. tour, Parkinson surmised: “On the whole, it has been a good tour for us. We have really enjoyed it. Starting in Tampa, it was a very entertaining game against Leeds. We have come out on the wrong side of two defeats against Liverpool and Sunderland, but it wasn’t for the lack of trying. We have had some good moments in the games. The first half today was difficult. It was windy, the pitch was a bit slow, and the game was quite slow. In the second half, we got more aggressive with our pressing and had opportunities to get back into the game. We got through the tour with very few injuries, the lads got plenty of minutes in their legs, and we go back to Wrexham in good spirits.”
Goals this season: 69 scored, 65 conceded (+4 goal difference). Title race: 24 points behind leaders Coventry. Wrexham A.F.C. are expected to field an experimental lineup against Middlesbrough, with several players then set to get further minutes against Wigan next Monday.
