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Wrexham's astonishing goals tally at home continues
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Wigan's priorities lie elsewhere amid points deduction
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Back to Wrexham to score three or more at 11/43.75
Welcome to the EFL
Wrexham AFC made their long-awaited return to the football league on Saturday, the record-breaking National League title winners hosting recently relegated League One outfit MK Dons.
Rob McElhenney, Ryan Reynolds and even Hugh Jackman were amongst the famous faces in attendance as the visitors dismantled the Red Dragons, finding the net on five occasions as front pair Mo Eisa and Jonathan Leko ran riot. Not even former Premier League goalkeeper Ben Foster could do much with his defence all at sea.
The EFL Cup brings a second chance to make a positive first impression and their world-famous owners will be delighted if the team can secure a first victory of the season in front of the Sky Sports cameras at the Racecourse Ground.
They host another recently relegated outfit in Wigan Athletic, a club that bounced between the second and third tiers in recent years while enduring a number of off-field issues. Shaun Maloney will hope his side can spoil the party but has much bigger fish to fry as far as their season is concerned.
Wrexham more than long throws and Mullin
Despite conceding five, Wrexham did entertain fans on opening day by scoring three goals of their own.
It allayed any fears about Phil Parkinson's side going into the campaign without star man Paul Mullin, who punctured his lung during the pre-season tour of America. On Saturday, Billy Waters and Sam Dalby started as the front pairing, both players that averaged over 0.4 goals per 90 minutes last season in their respective leagues.
It is likely that Phil Parkinson changes much of his starting XI for this fixture but he will be replacing quality with quality. Jordan Davies and Anthony Forde made goalscoring appearances from the bench at the weekend with excellent strikes while centre-back Aaron Hayden and striker Ollie Palmer both managed double figures last season.
What makes Wrexham such a threat is their ability to create opportunities from all areas, regardless of who plays. While Paul Mullin's finishing and Ben Tozer's giant throw are obvious threats, they also scored over 20 goals from set-piece situations and over 25 from deliveries into the box from open play.
There's always goals in Wrexham
Saturday also continued Wrexham's remarkable record of entertaining their own supporters when it comes to scoring goals.
Since beating Aldershot Town 4-1 on 26th February 2022, the club from the newly anointed city in North Wales have scored two or more goals in 36 of their 40 home matches. Furthermore, they have scored three or more goals in 15 of their 23 league matches at the Racecourse and in all six of their cup matches, including the drama-filled 3-3 draw with Championship runners-up Sheffield United.
They are taking on a Wigan Athletic side that were recently relegated from the second tier and they will provide a challenge. However, the Latics come into the new season trying to overturn an eight-point deduction following ownership issues and their priorities are on the league first and foremost.
The expectation is that Shaun Maloney, like most managers, will use the competition as an opportunity to give fringe and young players an opportunity, and their bench during the 2-1 win at Derby County contained no outfielder over the age of 23. The visit to Wrexham could be a stern test for a young group against a side packed with experience in front of a raucous and excited crowd.