Cardiff caretaker manager Aaron Ramsey (left) and Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson face potentially defining weekends with their clubs
Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales
Two of Wales’ biggest football clubs are bracing themselves for what could be a defining weekend as they head in very different directions.
Less than six years ago, Cardiff City stood four divisions above Wrexham.
While the Bluebirds were beating Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Premier League, Wrexham were still a non-league side smarting from defeat against Eastleigh in the National League play-offs.
By Saturday evening, we might have confirmation that Wrexham will start next season a division above Cardiff.
This is how that could happen, and how the two clubs reached this point.
Chaotic Cardiff on the brink
It is 22 years since Cardiff last played in the third tier of English football but, having narrowly avoided relegation from the Championship in two of the three previous campaigns, this looks like the season when they will drop to League One.
The Bluebirds are second from bottom of the Championship, three points adrift of safety with only two games left.
There was an air of resignation around Cardiff City Stadium following the 1-1 draw with Oxford United on Easter Monday, with home fans seemingly accepting that relegation is now almost inevitable.
So how has a club that has enjoyed two Premier League promotions in the past 12 years lost its way to such an extent that it now stands on the brink of demotion to League One?
Cardiff City have not been relegated from the second tier since 1985
Instability and upheaval on and off the field have played a significant role, with owner Vincent Tan going through 16 managers in his 15 years at Cardiff.
Wales captain Aaron Ramsey is the latest to take charge, given the reins on a temporary basis last Saturday after Omer Riza was sacked.
Ramsey, who is still registered as a Cardiff player, but currently injured, was given a hero’s welcome for his first game in the dugout against Oxford.
That was in stark contrast to the protests outside Cardiff City Stadium before kick-off, with fans calling for Tan and the rest of the board to leave the club.
Tan has overseen a tempestuous era in the Welsh capital, causing deep divisions with his 2012 rebrand of Cardiff’s colours from its traditional blue to red. Despite a fierce backlash, it was not until 2015 that he reversed that decision.
Some successful periods most notably promotion to the Premier League in 2018 helped heal some of the old wounds, but there remains a disconnect between the club and its fans.
On Saturday, Cardiff host West Bromwich Albion knowing that, realistically, they must win to have any hope of staying in the Championship.
However, even two wins from their final two fixtures might not be enough to secure their survival.
“It is a difficult position we are in, there’s no shying away from that,” says Ramsey.
“For me, I’m enjoying it. The people I’ve brought in are enjoying it and have brought that bit of freshness and everyone is buying into it. It’s all about getting the players into the best possible place for the game on Saturday.
“There are a lot of things that can happen until the end of the season, a lot of football to be played.”
Wrexham’s irresistible rise
While Cardiff fall deeper into the mire, Wrexham are a club and city united on a steep upward trajectory as they savour the journey of a lifetime.
Having languished in the fifth tier of English football since relegation from the Football League in 2008 and nearly going out of business, Wrexham were transformed when they were bought by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021.
The actors’ involvement has not only rejuvenated the club’s fortunes on the pitch but lifted its global profile to unrecognisable levels with a fly-on-the-wall documentary series and the presence of celebrities at games.
Wrexham won the National League title in 2023 and followed that with promotion from League Two at the first attempt the following season.
Now they have an historic third successive promotion int their sights.
Captain James McClean (right) is one of the Wrexham players who have already played in the Premier League
Wrexham occupy the second automatic promotion position in League One with two matches remaining in the regular season.
They are two points clear of their nearest challengers, Wycombe Wanderers, who visit sixth-place Leyton Orient at 12:30 BST on Saturday.
If Wycombe lose or draw that game, that will present Wrexham with the chance to seal promotion with victory against Charlton Athletic four points behind in fourth place at the Stok Cae Ras at 17:30 BST on the same day.
“It [Wycombe’s game] is long enough before our game that everybody’s going to be watching it, we can’t hide away from that,” says Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson.
“We know what we’ve got to do, we’ve got two games to do it and we’ll be going all out to try and achieve that.”
Wrexham have not played in the second tier since 1982, three years before Cardiff were last relegated from that same level.
Four decades on, the clubs could be about to trade places on a weekend of starkly contrasting fortunes.
