Forget Jay Stansfield, Wrexham have a £15m League One player who cost Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds nothing
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds get a lot of flak for their spending but Wrexham’s transfer budget pales in comparison to Birmingham City.
Wrexham came up from League Two this season, while Birmingham City were relegated down from the Championship.
In turn, the Blues already had something of an advantage as though not amazing, their squad had several Championship-level stars in it.
They also spent a lot of money in the 2024 summer transfer window, breaking the League One transfer record to sign Jay Stansfield from Fulham for more than £15m, according to Sky Sports News.
As a result, it isn’t surprising to see the Midlands outfit topping the third tier going into the final few months of the campaign.
But while Birmingham bought their star man, Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds didn’t have to pay a penny for their most valuable player.
Wrexham have their own Jay Stansfield
Sam Smith, Modou Faal and Ollie Rathbone have all arrived as record transfers at the Racecourse Ground over the last year.
Smith is still getting up to speed at Wrexham and while Rathbone has impressed recently, it’s still clear that another star is the club’s biggest asset.
The man in question is Max Cleworth, who has been on the club’s books since youth level and is one of the few surviving players from the takeover in 2021.
The centre-back has really come into his own this season and after another stellar showing during Wrexham’s win over Mansfield Town, earned high praise from his manager.
Phil Parkinson said on Cleworth: “It’s a phenomenal return, he’s a great finisher.
“Max, Eoghan [O’Connell] and Tom [O’Connor] were great today, not just the defending but the way they stepped in with the ball and started our attacks. They were progressive with their play and it made a huge difference for us.”
Max Cleworth 2024/25 Wrexham stats
Cleworth has started 28 League One games this season and after netting against Mansfield, now has seven goals to his name.
That makes him Wrexham’s joint-top scorer in the league alongside Elliot Lee and the highest-scoring centre-back in England’s top-four tiers in 2024/25.
As well as providing a serious attacking threat, the 22-year-old’s ability to play and carry the ball out from the back is second to none in this team.
Wrexham fans praised Cleworth against Mansfield, suggesting he’s ‘too good’ for League One, and they might be right.
Given his age, goal threat and ball-playing ability, it’s obvious that should Cleworth ever be sold – something Wrexham fans will be praying does not happen – he will easily fetch a sum higher than or at the very least equivalent to the £15m fee paid for Stansfield.
