Wrexham could be set to land Southampton midfielder Will Smallbone as the Saints’ move for Finn Azaz nears completion and Ryan Reynolds’ side push for a late addition
A £14million move by Wrexham’s Championship rivals Southampton could allow them to complete the signing of Will Smallbone.
The Red Dragons, owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, have been linked with a £7.5m bid for the Saints midfielder as the summer transfer window draws to a close. Manager Phil Parkinson is still looking to make more additions ahead of Monday’s deadline, despite already bringing in ten new players since Wrexham’s promotion to the second tier was confirmed back in April.
The North Wales outfit have experienced a difficult start to their new campaign, picking up just one point from their opening three games. Parkinson now appears to be keen to strengthen in midfield by luring Smallbone to the Racecourse Ground.
According to the Irish Sun, the chances of the 25-year-old joining Wrexham have received a major boost as Southampton look poised to sign Finn Azaz from Middlesbrough.
The Saints have reportedly reached an agreement to pay an initial £12m for the Republic of Ireland international plus £2m in add-ons, despite Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Leeds United also showing interest.
Azaz’s international colleague Smallbone is currently out of favour at Southampton and has yet to feature under manager Will Still this season after suffering a calf injury in pre-season. He has made 90 appearances and scored on nine occasions since his debut in 2020 after coming through the club’s academy.
Smallbone featured on 18 occasions in the Premier League last term, scoring once at Liverpool, as the Saints were relegated from the top flight. He played a key role for Southampton under Russell Martin the last time they gained promotion from the Championship via the play-offs in May 2024, registering seven goals and four assists.
It’s claimed that Wrexham are hoping to receive an answer regarding the move by the end of this week. Parkinson seems eager to bolster his midfield after being linked with several other targets in that department, including Wales and Rennes star Jordan James and West Ham’s Andy Irving.
While Wrexham have spent big this summer, Parkinson insists the club’s owners have not set any unrealistic targets for him. That’s despite Reynolds and Mac making no secret of their long term ambition of taking Wrexham to the Premier League.
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“One thing with Rob and Ryan is they have never spoken about putting pressure on us,” Parkinson told The Leader. “The talk was about getting the squad and the template we set out in the summer and what we are working towards.
“They are the conversations I had with Rob and Ryan, rather than, ‘We are going to do this or we have got to do that.’
“That has never been the way the conversations have gone. Rob and Ryan have just been supportive to help us build a competitive team.”
Meanwhile, three Wrexham players have been called up to the Wales squad for the national side’s crunch World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan next Thursday. Goalkeeper Danny Ward, forward Nathan Broadhead and striker Kieffer Moore have all been named in manager Craig Bellamy’s 25-man list as Wrexham are represented for the first time since 2010.