AFC Wrexham standout players throughout incredible League One campaign so far

National World - LocalTV

Wrexham AFC’s 2024/2025 season has been marked by standout performances from key players.  Defender Eoghan O’Connell has been a consistent presence in the backline, bolstering the team’s defensive efforts. Additionally, goalkeeper Mark Howard has delivered crucial saves, ensuring vital points for the team. These contributions have been pivotal in Wrexham’s campaign this season.

Transcript

00:00Who has stood out as a shining light in Wrexham's squad this season?

00:26I think it's got to be Ryan Barnett for me. The wing-back, more of a proper winger,

00:30top assister in League One at this moment in time. He's just been that focal point. He wasn't really

00:35playing much in League Two and the questions being asked about his future at the club and

00:40now he's taken it on leaps and bounds. He's playing with real confidence. He's given more

00:44licence to attack. His delivery into the box is superb. He's got a bit of an eye for goal as well,

00:50can score all different types of goals, but he's a proper old-school winger. Loves a step-over,

00:55loves going out wide, putting a cross in, and that's been perfect for the chances we have

01:01created in the box. We're still very good in the air. Stephen Fletcher was phenomenal over the

01:05festive period, coming up clutch with countless last-minute goals to seriously influence the

01:12results. If you have to look at players of the season, though, I think Max Kluwerf is another

01:16one, the young centre-back. He's always been in and around the squad. He had one season at

01:22National League level where he played a lot, then he dropped out completely, then he came back into

01:26the fold. Same happens in League Two, didn't start the season. By the end, he was playing every week

01:30and in League One, he's played every single week. He is a homegrown talent from the academy.

01:37He scores a lot of goals. He's defensively sound and for his age, he's already played so many

01:42matches. He genuinely will be a contender to go down if he stayed at the club as their record

01:47ever appearance holder because he's played that much football at such a young age. He goes under

01:51the radar quite a bit. In terms of midfield, Matty James's arrival, that's sure to wreck him up quite

01:56a bit. George Dobson was good when he arrived from Charlton. He's dropped out the team a little bit

02:00in recent weeks. You've got to look at that experience, really. The amount of games where

02:05James McLean and Stephen Fletcher just shine through with their fitness towards the end.

02:09They get Wrexham over the line. They've got that game management, that professionalism. They've

02:14played so many times at such a high level who do kind of just exist. They find it difficult to get

02:19that momentum to go up and they sort of just always occupy those mid-table positions. As well,

02:25if you look at the championship this season, there's a good chance you could get rid of three

02:29of the bigger traditional teams who have a lot of money. It would actually be in Wrexham's interest.

02:33It's still quite an old squad. Maybe going forward, they need to invest a bit more in getting

02:37some younger blood in there and building for maybe a more sustainable future with that core

02:42group of players. But I think that's what's so key for Wrexham. They've got a good mixture at the moment.

02:47Everyone has to pass the sort of personality test that Phil Parkinson has in place and

02:52it's just a real professional set of players

02:54who all know how to win and are all really eager to win as well.

Category

Transcript

Recommended