By Paul Jones
Phil Parkinson insists he will make changes but still respect the tournament when Wrexham return to the League Cup on Tuesday night after an absence of 15 years.
The Wrexham manager leads his team back into the competition for Football League clubs on the back of a chastening opening day 5-3 defeat at home to MK Dons in their first League Two match of the campaign last weekend.
The Reds host League One club Wigan with the Carabao Cup match set to be televised live on Sky Sports.
“The players who didn’t play on Saturday need minutes because we have lacked minutes in pre-season as everybody knows for different reasons,” said Parkinson.
“We need to utilise this game to get all the squad up to speed.
“If you look at the lads on Saturday, we looked like a team who needed the game and there will be a lot of changes against Wigan.
“It is not disrespecting the tournament at all, it is just because of the pre-season we’ve had that we had Wigan in mind as a game where players need some minutes and we will definitely be doing that.”
James McClean on possible Wrexham debut vs Wigan tonight: "I am looking forward to playing a game as soon as possible…the sooner the better, because I am raring to go.
"I am looking forward to getting in, getting settled, and playing for this club." [@LeaderLiveSport] #WxmAFC pic.twitter.com/Oi6Wffa1d0— RobRyanRed – Wrexham AFC Podcast (@RobRyanRed) August 8, 2023
Wrexham’s final pre-season game prior to the regular season was against Philadelphia Union on their tour of the USA. It was a game delayed for over two hours during half-time due to extreme weather conditions.
Parkinson added: “We knew coming into last week’s training that we were short on minutes.
“We can’t control a thunderstorm in Philadelphia, that is out of our control, but we went into Saturday’s game without a 90-minute game under our belt and it looked that way.”
Saturday’s encounter was an emotional occasion as a sell-out crowd watched their side play their first Sky Bet League Two game since 2008.
But Wrexham returned with a bump in front of ambitious owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, with the dominant Dons becoming the first side to win at the SToK Racecourse since November 2021.
It’s Tuesday night and we’re back under the lights for Round One of the Carabao Cup!
🔴⚪️ #WxmAFC pic.twitter.com/WwcV3QYkhe
— Wrexham AFC (@Wrexham_AFC) August 8, 2023