• Mullin punctured lung in pre-season
• September cited as earliest return
• Wrexham play EFL opener on Saturday

WHAT HAPPENED? Wrexham’s top scorer from last season collided in a nasty-looking challenge with former Manchester United goalkeeper Nathan Bishop in their recent pre-season victory. The former Cambridge United forward has been recovering in L.A. ever since, and his club are struggling to sign a replacement.

WHAT THEY SAID: “I spoke to Paul yesterday, obviously enjoying the Californian sun,” Parkinson told BBC Sport Wales. “It’s not the worse place to be but he’d rather be back here. He’s in a lot of pain but the owners are making sure it’s as comfortable a stay as possible. There’s not much treatment he can have out there. It’s dealing with the pain management at the moment. When he can come back, which is in a week’s time, we’ll assess him again and do everything in our power to get him back on the pitch as soon as possible as long it’s safe for him.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Given he’s only set to miss the first part of Wrexham’s first EFL campaign since 2008, Mullin still has plenty of time to make an impact. The Red Dragons are currently heavily fancied to push on and achieve back-to-back promotions this season.