Wrexham, promoted three times in four years under co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, face Liverpool in a pre-season friendly at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, just five years after the pair took over a club then in the National League. Manager Phil Parkinson says there is now genuine expectation on the club to continue its rise towards the Premier League, even after missing out on the Championship playoffs on the final day of last season.

Parkinson insists finishing seventh in the Championship at the first attempt was a strong achievement given the scale of the club's rapid climb, and his side go into the Liverpool match in confident form having already beaten Manchester United and Leeds in pre-season. However, Wrexham remain the only Championship club yet to make a summer signing, though a deal for Crystal Palace full-back Danny Imray is close, and Parkinson has warned the division will be tougher next season with relegated West Ham, Burnley and Wolves bringing parachute payments into contention for promotion.