"A yo-yo club" - Wrexham's chances of Premier League football in 5 years played down | OneFootball

FLW's Red Dragons fan pundit cannot see the club reaching the Premier League in the next five years

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

The sky is the limit for Wrexham as a club after their impressive climb over the last few years, but their chances of reaching the Premier League within the next five have been talked down.

Wrexham's ascent to the third-tier of English football has been well-documented over the last few years, mainly due to their famous co-chairmen Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, and after back-to-back promotions, they are now looking to reach the second-tier for the first time since 1982, but their one true dream is to make it to the coveted top flight.

Phil Parkinson's side are certainly showing no signs of slowing down in the third tier, with three wins and one draw from their first four league games this season seeing them sit in second place heading into September, but the Premier League is still a long way off in their journey.

Wrexham fan pundit pessimistic over top-flight chances

Due to their high-profile ownership and quick climb from the National League in the last two years, many would pinpoint the Red Dragons as one of the more likely lower-league clubs to make it to the Premier League in the years to come, but it will certainly take a lot of things to go right for them to get there so soon.

Despite the positivity surrounding their potential chances of yet another promotion this season, Red Dragons fan pundit Liam Grice takes a rational view of the likelihood of them making the top-flight in the next five years.

“I’m probably one of the more pessimistic Wrexham fans there is, so no, I can’t see the club in the Premier League within five years," he told FLW.

“Obviously, the club has the potential now with the ownership and the ever-growing fanbase to one day make it there, but within the next five years I think is a bit of a stretch.

“I was surprised when we got to League Two, surprised again when we won back-to-back promotions to get to League One, and I’ve been surprised again that we’re doing so well in League One. “I don’t expect us to be in the Championship within the next five years, never mind the Premier League. “It’s something I’d love to happen, but I’m going to be a realist and probably say no I don’t think we will be in the Premier League in the next five years.

“Maybe in the next five years we’ll just be starting to become a yo-yo club between the Championship and League One, that’s where I’d like to be.”

Wrexham's aim is Premier League football

The aim has always been for Wrexham to reach the English top-flight for the first time in their history since their Hollywood owners took over back in November 2020, and they are on their way to doing so, but face their toughest challenge so far this season in League One.

Speaking last year in an interview with BBC Sport, movie-star Reynolds confirmed the club's lofty ambitions, but hesitated to put a timeframe on their potential success.

He said: "The plan is now, and has always been, the Premier League.

"I can't really put a date on that. But if it's theoretically possible to go from fifth division to Premier League, why wouldn't we do it?"

Boss Parkinson shared Reynolds' sentiments in a recent interview with FourFourTwo, as he referred to other success stories in years gone by to prove that nothing is impossible for his side.

He said: "We’re certainly not looking any further than the next game, but I said recently that, eventually, I don’t think the Premier League is impossible – look at Luton Town.

"They got there with a brilliant structure behind the scenes, they gradually put building blocks in place, they made good decisions and got their rewards.

"There are clubs who try to achieve success and put themselves at huge risk financially by doing that, but this club isn’t one of them. The owners and myself want to create a club that’s strong for years to come. If we keep recruiting well, I hope there’s more to come."

Wrexham will be hoping to reach the top flight soon with the owners' clear ambition making it likely that they will reach their goal one day, but for now, they need to focus on the difficult task of getting out of League One, and then navigating the Championship if they do go up.