Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been warned they could be priced out of securing their top targets in the January transfer window.
The North Wales outfit's Hollywood owners swooped in to sign six new players over the summer after the Red Dragons gained their passage back to League Two after 15 years away. The resurgent side have settled into life in the fourth tier since then, with Phil Parkinson leading his team to third place after 25 games played.
Looking to help lock in a sustained challenge for back-to-back promotions, it has been speculated that Wrexham could be active in the transfer market again in January. Among the players rumoured to have been earmarked by McElhenney and Reynolds as potential recruits are Jonson Clarke-Harris and Lee Gregory.
In the case of the former, he has a prolific record for League One side Peterborough United - with the forward boasting ten strikes in 24 outings this term. Likewise, Sheffield Wednesday veteran striker Gregory has a track record of finding the net in both the Championship and League One.
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Capturing either attacker would represent a coup for Wrexham but they have now been warned that they could be aiming too high when it comes to their targets. Speaking to Football League World, Former England star Carlton Palmer said: "Wrexham, going for back-to-back promotions, are interested in signing Lee Gregory and Jonson Clarke-Harris.
"Both are proven goalscorers in League One, [with] Gregory getting promoted to the Championship with Sheffield Wednesday at the last time of asking last season. Both players won’t come cheap, but if they are retained by their clubs until the end of the season, Wrexham would have two gifted League One strikers and only have their wages to find, which won’t be cheap.
"I can’t see Peterborough allowing Harris to leave for nothing, so Wrexham might have to stump up a fee in January if they want him. From the noise that is coming out of Peterborough, they’ve already rejected offers for him and won’t allow him to leave cheaply."
As things stand, the extent of the business conducted by Wrexham's co-owners in January has been confined to the new deals handed to Elliot Lee and Paul Mullin. The Racecourse Ground favourites were rewarded for their commitment to the cause with fresh contract extensions until the end of the 2026-27 campaign.
Prior to the opening of the January transfer window, Dragons boss Parkinson did admit that he was not in a position to confirm that the club will do any more business this winter. Issuing a coy admission, he confessed: "I don't want to make any predictions for January in terms of incoming players.
"We have got a strong squad but we are always looking. As our supporters know, we are always striving to improve and we are assessing a lot of situations at the moment but we are keeping our cards close to our chest."