Wrexham boss Parkinson 'probably under pressure' for first time

Former Wales striker Iwan Roberts has suggested that Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson may be under pressure for the first time since taking charge of the club. This comes after a 2-1 home defeat by Birmingham on Friday night, which left Wrexham winless and without a clean sheet in four matches across all competitions in the 2026-27 season. Roberts noted this in an interview with BBC Radio Wales, describing Parkinson as "probably under pressure for the first time" since his appointment at Wrexham.

While Roberts praised Parkinson's past success at the club, he expressed concern about his tactical approach. He pointed out that Parkinson tends to stick to his preferred back three formation even when his team is behind late in the game, suggesting a change to a back four might provide additional defensive support. Roberts emphasized this point by stating that "when you're chasing a game, you're behind with 15, 20 minutes to go, he still persists with the back three, instead of maybe trying something different, going to a back four and getting another body further forward."

Defensively, Wrexham has struggled, with Roberts highlighting that the team has the sixth worst defensive record in the league both this season and last. Specifically, Wrexham conceded more goals at home than the bottom club in Sheffield Wednesday. Roberts underscored these defensive issues, saying, "The Achilles heel last season, and the reason they didn't get into the play-offs, is they had the sixth worst defensive record in that league and this is the scary statistic - at home, only bottom club Sheffield Wednesday conceded more goals than Wrexham."

Furthermore, Roberts voiced concerns over the size of Parkinson's squad. With the manager still actively seeking new players, Roberts suggested that the club's roster of 33 players may be excessive. He stated that "Wrexham were the highest spenders last summer and I think there's only four clubs that have spent more this summer, and he's still on about bringing more players in." Roberts believes that this large squad "can cause you problems," potentially complicating management and performance on the field.