Phil Parkinson has been manager of Wrexham for three years-

Although there was disappointment in his first season at the helm after Wrexham lost 5-4  to Grimsby Town in the National League play-off semi-final, success quickly followed.

Wrexham have become a global sensation under Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, and Parkinson can see a huge difference compared to when he was appointed manager on July 1, 2021.

“You have to pinch yourself that it is three years ago that I came here,” said the Reds’ boss, who has been in the dugout for more than 20 years and has also managed Colchester, Hull, Charlton, Bradford, Bolton and Sunderland.

“Look at how the club has evolved in those three years.

“From that first pre-season, it is a completely different football club now and so much progress has been made.

“The club has been improved in all areas and there is still a lot of growth to come.

“Hopefully we can keep developing this year.”

Parkinson became the first manager brought in by multi-millionaire actors Reynolds and McElhenney when he replaced Dean Keates in the Racecourse hot-seat.

Although he admits things didn’t run smoothly when his first season in charge kicked-off, Parkinson feels being able to make new signings in the January 2022 transfer window soon paid off and says the squad continues to get stronger and stronger.

“From that first pre-season up until January, it was tough,” added Parkinson.

“I inherited a squad and was getting to know the players in pre-season, it was disrupted by Covid – I had Covid myself – and we were trying to make signings.

“It was definitely a feeling of chaos up until the window because it was a balance of understanding the division, getting to know the players and trying to bring players in.

“But we learnt quickly, got to the first transfer window in January and then improved the squad again.

“It has been interesting evolving the team and so much progress has been made with the strength of the squad.”