Wrexham are interested in signing the Championship’s best keeper in recent seasons, Anthony Patterson. His asking price has been set at £8m.
In previous weeks, Wrexham No.2 Danny Ward hinted that Arthur Okonkwo will stay as the club’s first choice goalkeeper going forward. That made sense too, after all, backing a fairly young and consistent performer in goal is often the way forward for ambitious clubs rather than relying on ageing players till their retirement.
The majority of Wrexham fans also see Okonkwo as an above-average Championship level keeper capable of pulling last-ditch saves to save the day. That said, it’s surprising that Wrexham are actively monitoring the market for another goalkeeper according to the latest reports.
Wrexham interested in signing £8m-rated Sunderland keeper Anthony Patterson
In the words of Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie: “Sunderland will listen to offers of at least £8m for goalkeeper Anthony Patterson this summer. The shot-stopper is available after falling behind Robin Roefs & Melker Ellborg in the #SAFC ranks. Wolves, Wrexham & Millwall are amongst the Championship clubs keen.”
Straightaway, it feels like a lack of trust from Wrexham in Arthur Okonkwo. The 24-year-old Nigerian international helped the club win consecutive League One and League Two promotions and wasn’t off the pace in the 2025/26 Championship either.
But at the end of the day, the Red Dragons are quite ruthless with replacing players. Every Wrexham fan has grown used to this over the last 5 years. Modern-day Wrexham legends like Paul Mullin, Ben Tozer, Elliot Lee and Steven Fletcher among others were quickly replaced by new players once they were deemed misfits to succeed in higher divisions.
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At certain points in the season, Arthur Okonkwo made a bunch of costly errors including the 2-1 Swansea City howler and poor performances at Watford, Southampton and Birmingham City. Turns out, that hasn’t gone down well with boss Phil Parkinson and the Wrexham hierarchy who are now eyeing Anthony Patterson’s signing.
Anthony Patterson is the best Championship keeper available for transfer
Moving on from Arthur Okonkwo will divide opinions among the Wrexham fanbase but nobody can deny Anthony Patterson is the best Championship keeper available on the market. At 26, the Sunderland deputy has reached back-to-back Championship playoffs in preceding seasons as the undisputed No.1.
Patterson’s save-making heroics guided Sunderland to Premier League promotion via playoffs in 2025, and later saw Millwall arrive on the brink of automatic promotion before getting knocked out in the semifinals against eventual winners Hull City.
In the four Championship seasons Patterson has played, he kept 14, 13 and 14 clean sheets respectively for Sunderland before adding 7 more to his tally during a 6-month loan at Millwall. That translates to a clean sheet every 3 Championship games.
Needless to say, that will be a massive help to the Wrexham backline who have looked lost in crucial moments of the game and ended up costing points.
The only downside to Anthony Patterson’s move is that it will eat up the majority of Wrexham’s summer transfer budget. Phil Parkinson’s men are weak in fullback positions and can do with an extra midfielder and attacker, so going all out with an £8m Patterson move will affect those plans.
Plus, Wolves and Millwall are also keen on Patterson. The former has Premier League parachute payments by their side for 2026/27 and the latter can easily convince Patterson to re-join them again on permanent basis. Wrexham will need to make a swift move to beat Wolves and Millwall to Patterson’s signing. Let’s see if they can.
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