Jose Mourinho to Wrexham? Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney warned over ‘gimmick’ appointments as ex-Red Dragons boss reveals ‘biggest problem’ with manager Phil Parkinson

Jose Mourinho on ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ sounds like fun, but Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been warned against any “gimmick” appointments.
The Red Dragons, with Hollywood co-owners at the helm, have made no secret of the fact that they want to reach the Premier League Promised Land. Phil Parkinson has done a remarkable job of steering them down the path.

Back-to-back promotions have lifted Wrexham into League One, with the second tier of English football now well within reach. Each step up the ladder requires more money to be spent and greater experience to be found, so could that lead to a former top-flight boss being sought – potentially a big name with multiple trophy wins to his name

When that question was put to Dean Saunders, with ex-Chelsea and Manchester United boss Mourinho being thrown into the mix, the former Red Dragons manager – speaking in association with FC Coins – told GOAL: “It would be a gimmick, wouldn’t it, to get Jose there. If they go up to the Championship, they might start thinking about who they can get. But you are going to have to pump a load of money in. I think Burnley’s budget when they came down from the Premier League, and Norwich, were like £40-45 million. That’s a massive jump from three or four million two years ago to get to 40 million. That’s paying a lot of players a lot of money, with a lot of class.

“Some managers, if they are on a hiding to nothing, won’t come. If you look at a job and think ‘what’s the playing budget, where is that budget in the league table and what do you expect from that budget?’ If my budget is the 10th highest in the league and you expect me to win the league, that has got the sack written all over it! But if you say ‘we’ve got the highest budget in the league and all I want is you to keep us up’, it’s the best job in the world and you’d do it for nothing because you’ll move up from that club.

“If someone says ‘we’ve got the 10th highest budget and we expect you to win the league’ – if they say play-offs then you back your coaching ability to get from 10th to sixth, but to overcome 10 teams that have all spent more money than you, that’s not a very good job to take. It does come down to money. It takes the romance out of football a little bit, but it does come down to money. Wrexham are where they are now mainly because of the money that has been pumped in and the players they have got.”

Wrexham have no need to consider a managerial change for now, with Parkinson still doing the business. He is not considered to have a “ceiling” – having initially been appointed as an EFL promotion specialist – and will believe that he can deliver on the grandest of ambitions in North Wales.

Wrexham have no need to consider a managerial change for now, with Parkinson still doing the business. He is not considered to have a “ceiling” – having initially been appointed as an EFL promotion specialist – and will believe that he can deliver on the grandest of ambitions in North Wales.

Phil Parkinson Wrexham vs Forest Green 2023-24Getty Images
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Saunders added on the only challenge that the Red Dragons face when it comes to their current boss: “While you keep winning games, you will always stay in a job. The biggest problem Wrexham have got is keeping him, not changing him. They will be thinking there are other clubs that think Phil Parkinson is a really good manager, he’s winning.

“That’s not an easy job, by the way. Spending the money, it’s easier when you’ve got it but it’s still not easy because you have to spend in the right way and keep the team winning, keep everyone happy. He’s just got to keep winning games, Phil. He will keep his job, and get offered more money. If he left today, they would be queuing up to take him.”

Parkinson has guided Wrexham up to third place in the League One table, through 13 games in the 2024-25 campaign, and will see the Red Dragons’ promotion credentials given another stern test on Saturday when playing host to high-flying Mansfield.