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Wanderers will be seeking a second opinion on Klaidi Lolos before deciding whether to send the former Crawley attacker for surgery on an ankle injury.
Ian Evatt has confirmed that the 23-year-old will be out for several weeks with ligament damage but that spell could be longer if he has to undergo an operation.
Lolos was injured late in Saturday’s 2-1 win at Leyton Orient after a challenge from home defender Dan Happe, which was punished by a yellow card by referee Charles Breakspear.
The leniency was hard to take at the time – Evatt also booked in his protests on the touchline – but the frustration has been magnified since it became clear the summer signing had suffered a serious injury.
“We are waiting for a decision on Klaidi,” the manager said. “The first specialist we saw indicated he might require surgery, so we are going to get a second opinion on that.
“It is not good and he is obviously frustrated and down. When injuries happen innocuously in football, twists and turns, or when it is through contact and a fair challenge, then OK. But for me, how there hasn’t been any retribution or why there wasn’t a red card on the day, it is all very frustrating.
“We made a report, and again on Tuesday, and both times the PGMOL indicated there should have been a red card. So, you know what happens next.”
Better news for Wanderers ahead of Wrexham’s visit is that Kyle Dempsey should be available, having returned to full training with no reoccurrence of the knee problem which kept him out of action for much of pre-season.
Evatt also confirmed that Carlos Mendes Gomes was stepping up his rehabilitation from a ruptured Achillies.
With a crowd of 25,000 expected on Sunday, the Wanderers boss is confident his side will be given every opportunity to claim a statement-making victory.
He said: “Every time we are at home in front of that many supporters it is a brilliant atmosphere, and I can remember the one we created in the home leg of the play-off against Barnsley, it was just incredible, so more of the same, really.
“We’d hope the fans can really back the players and we’d hope we can perform to our levels and get three points.”
Sunday also sees the return of former Bolton boss Phil Parkinson and his assistant Steve Parkin, both of whom have helped transform Wrexham’s fortunes in the last few years.
After leaving Wanderers in the summer of 2019 Parkinson had a little over a year in charge of Sunderland – and met the Whites a few months after his appointment at the Stadium of Light with the two sides contesting a goalless draw.
In July 2021 he took charge of Wrexham and is now closing in on 1,000 games as a manager, a milestone he is on course to pass early next year.
Evatt believes both Parkinson and Parkin will be given a warm welcome back to the club.
“They absolutely should,” he said. “They are both gentlemen who did a brilliant job in tough circumstances here and I have got a lot of respect for them. Phil is a good man and I think the way he has handled himself, and the rest of the coaching staff have handled themselves since going into Wrexham is exemplary, really. It is not an easy job, especially with everything else that goes on there, but to keep him, his staff and the players focussed on getting results on the pitch is something that he should be extremely proud of.”
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