REVEALED! Wrexham AFC Are Pushing Hard On Another Wanderers Ace In The Summer But Deal Complicated Because He Is The One Only One That…

Humphrey Ker comments on Wrexham’s previous interest in John McAtee, ‘so many factors’ at play in Bolton Wanderers move

Wrexham landed eight summer signings after winning promotion to League One, but one target slipped through Phil Parkinson’s net.

Wrexham secured back-to-back promotions last season, finishing second in League Two at the first time of asking.

Phil Parkinson had to make difficult decisions in order for Wrexham to go again and chase a third straight promotion.

Ben Tozer joined Forest Green Rovers, whilst Rob McElhenney’s favourite player, Luke Young, departed Wrexham too.

Sentiment had to be thrown out of the window for Wrexham, and Parkinson was backed with eight summer signings.

Arthur Okonkwo, Callum Burton, Lewis Brunt, Dan Scarr, Sebastian Revan, George Dobson, Ollie Rathbone and Modou Faal arrived, but one target ended up joining a League One rival.

Humphrey Ker on Wrexham targeting John McAtee

Wrexham looked into signing John McAtee last summer as the forward returned to Luton Town at the end of his Barnsley loan spell.

McElhenney was impressed with McAtee as he was a thorn in Wrexham’s side whilst playing for Grimsby Town.

Reports earlier this year suggested that Wrexham wanted to sign McAtee as competition for Elliot Lee in the final third.

Bolton Wanderers agreed a seven-figure deal for McAtee and Wrexham moved on to other targets.

Humphrey Ker has now spoken about that situation in his interview on Ben Foster’s FozCast.

Ker noted that he saw fans arguing over the deal when McAtee was essentially given the same offer at both clubs – and he just chose Bolton.

Ker highlighted that McAtee is from the Manchester area and his brother James plays for Manchester City, so personal factors are just as important as financial offers when it comes to transfers.

“This is pulling back the curtain probably more than I’m supposed or allowed to, but this off-season, we were looking at John McAtee, a player who was at Luton, and he ended up signing for Bolton,” said Ker.

“The press had got hold of ‘Wrexham are interested in signing John McAtee, so are Bolton’, he goes to Bolton and the Bolton fans are like ‘tinpot Wrexham, he wants to come to a proper football club’, and our fans are like ‘they must have paid three times as much for him as we were willing to’ and ‘we’ve given up on the league because we’re not spending enough money’.

“It was basically like… John McAtee just thought, ‘I quite fancy going and playing at Bolton’. I think he basically got the same deal from two different places, and he was like, ‘that one, please’. It can be because of so many factors; it’s closer to Manchester, where I think he’s from, his brother is at City, there’s just any number of things that go into it,” he added.