Highlights
- According to David McGoldrick, there is more pressure on Wrexham than Notts County in the current season due to various factors surrounding Wrexham, such as the owners and documentaries.
- McGoldrick believes that pressure can have both positive and negative effects on teams, and it may make teams think differently when they come to Meadow Lane.
- Both Notts County and Wrexham have had a challenging start to their League Two journey, but County has shown progress and is currently undefeated in their last three league matches. McGoldrick has been a consistent contributor in County's attack.
David McGoldrick has exclusively told Football League World that he believes there to be more pressure upon Wrexham than Notts County in the 2023/24 campaign.
McGoldrick finished as Derby County's leading goalscorer last term with 22 League One strikes to his name, but rejected the possibility of a contractual renewal following the expiration of his terms to head up the A52 to sign for his boyhood club instead.
The 35-year-old started his career at Meadow Lane all the way back in 2004 and made four appearances at the age of sixteen prior to joining Southampton later that year.
He has enjoyed an illustrious goal-laden career in the Football League which has entailed notable spells with the likes of Ipswich Town and Sheffield United, and he went full-circle this summer to rejoin Notts County upon their return to the fourth-tier.
Notts County and Wrexham's rivalry
County curtailed a four-year absence from League Two by engaging in a stunning promotion pursuit alongside newfound adversaries Wrexham, who eventually scooped the title with a transfer kitty and global audience never before seen at that level.
In an unprecented turn of events, the 107 points that Luke Williams' side amassed forced them to pave their promotion path through the play-offs instead, and such a competitive verve between the two outfits has resulted in many supporters tipping them for similar success this season in spite of the significant step-up.
They face expectations not known to any newly-promoted League Two clubs before them, but County's McGoldrick feels that the aforementioned factors have placed more pressure on their cross-border counterparts.
What has Notts County's David McGoldrick said about Wrexham?
McGoldrick explained to Football League World via Sky Bet: “[There’s] more [pressure on] Wrexham than us [Notts County], with everything that comes with them – the owners and the documentaries and everything that goes with it.
"But obviously Notts County just gets tagged with them because they came up through the National League.
“There’s pressure everywhere you know – pressure can be a good thing, pressure can be a bad thing, maybe it makes teams think differently when they come to Meadow Lane.
“We’ve just come from the National League and teams are sitting off us and showing us respect, so that may be a good or a bad thing. There’s pressure in all walks of life, so you’ve just got to take it.”
How have Notts County and Wrexham performed in League Two?
The duo have embarked upon turbulent initiations to the rigors of League Two, leaving fans surprised at the adjustment period that has promptly beckoned.
Indeed, County were thrashed 5-1 on the opening day away to Sutton United with McGoldrick's strike 20 minutes from time arriving as a sole consolation, while Wrexham also leaked five goals but did score three of their own against MK Dons.
Both sides have continued to assert their dominance on football matches with respective expansive brands of possession-based football, but it has come at the expense of conceding plenty to teams that prefer to sit back and soak up pressure before launching direct counter-attacks against the high lines that Wrexham and the Magpies deploy from pushing so many players upfield.
Harsh and steep learning curves have been obtained, and they will now be hoping to graduate from the trials and tribulations that they have faced in the opening month of League Two action.
County certainly appear en-route to doing just that and are undefeated in their last three league outings now, winning two of them and scoring six goals in the process.
And, as you would expect, McGoldrick has been a constant in his side's attack, starting every league match to date and direclty contributing two goals- an output that should only increase as the season goes on.