Three reasons Charlton Athletic are thriving in Championship while Wrexham flounder

Wrexham fans must be looking at the Championship table right now and wondering why Charlton Athletic are five points and nine places ahead of them already.

Just six months ago, Wrexham hammered Charlton 3-0 at the Racecourse Ground to secure automatic promotion from League One.

The Red Dragons ended the campaign seven points clear of the Addicks. Nathan Jones did manage to get Charlton promoted via the play-offs, of course, but given the vast difference in money spent in the transfer market this summer, you’d be forgiven for thinking there’d be a growing gap between the two teams this term.

Indeed, there is a gulf right now between Wrexham and Charlton; it’s just not going the way most fans would have predicted.

After Wrexham’s defeat to Stoke City this weekend, the Red Dragons are teetering above the drop zone and fans are losing patience with Phil Parkinson. Meanwhile, Charlton are just outside the play-offs and have been one of the big success stories in the Championship this season.

So, where has it all gone wrong for Wrexham, and why are Charlton thriving in the second tier?

Wrexham are missing big chances, Charlton are more clinical

If you look at the numbers on paper, Wrexham’s 16-goal haul this season puts Charlton’s ten goals to shame. However, there is more to it than that.

Just this weekend, we saw Ryan Longman miss a gilt-edged chance while Kieffer Moore misfired in front of goal.

Aside from outscoring Norwich City in a 3-2 thriller, Wrexham have really lacked a cutting edge this season. The fact of the matter is, the Red Dragons are creating chances regularly, but are not putting them away.

Long gone are the days of Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer banging the goals in. Wrexham’s strikers are being made to work this season, and they’re not quite up to the task.

Charlton’s forwards aren’t up to much either. Big-money signing Charlie Kelman has failed to live up to the high standards he set in League One, that’s for sure.

But, the Addicks are getting goals from other areas. Midfielder Sonny Carey tops their scoring charts with three goals, while full-back James Bree has two goals and three assists.

What really matters here is that Charlton are putting their chances away, and a number of players are stepping up to do so. Moore (four goals), Josh Windass (three goals) and Lewis O’Brien (three goals) have all contributed for Wrexham, but have also spurned opportunities to add to their tallies.

At this level, you simply cannot afford to miss those chances. Come the end of the season, Charlton’s efficiency in front of goal will surely see them land a strong placing, while Wrexham’s wastefulness may well cost them their Championship status.

Charlton have structure and balance in the team

Wrexham made changes to their squad en masse this summer. That was absolutely necessary, given the lack of quality among the Red Dragons’ ranks previously.

With 13 new signings for Wrexham this summer, it was always going to take time for Phil Parkinson to establish a fresh dynamic within the squad. Add to that the fact that high profile names like Mullin, Palmer, Steven Fletcher, and Mark Howard all departed, and it’s not surprising that this upheaval has not served Wrexham well.

In the long-term, having a stronger squad on paper will surely pay off. But, so much turbulence in the space of a couple of months has affected the rhythm of Parkinson’s side and there’s simply not enough consistency in terms of personnel.

In contrast, Charlton have maintained the core of their promotion-winning squad. They may have added 11 new signings, but those new faces have supplemented the existing foundations, rather than replacing them entirely.

There’s a lot to be said for momentum in football, and that’s something Wrexham simply do not have right now.

Nathan Jones’ game management is superior to Phil Parkinson’s

If you look at Charlton’s games this season, one thing is clear: they know how to see out a game and grind out results.

First of all, they’ve kept four clean sheets in ten league games, shutting out Watford, Sheffield United, Blackburn Rovers, and Bristol City. Wrexham have kept just one clean sheet, in the 2-0 win over Millwall.

Aside from their clean sheets, Charlton have also picked up a point against Millwall despite going down to ten men, won in the 90th minute against the Blades, and held firm in the face of Sheffield Wednesday’s efforts to get across the line and bag three points this weekend.

That resilience and organisation stems from Nathan Jones and his approach to the game. We saw it last year in League One, with Charlton often stifling opponents and doing the dirty work to get what they needed from a game, and those tactics are working again now.

What’s crucial, though, is that Jones acts decisively in games and makes the necessary changes to help his team adapt to the circumstances.

Contrast that to Wrexham, and it’s a dismal juxtaposition. In the first game of the season, the Red Dragons were leading Southampton until the 90th minute and ended up losing 2-1. They were beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 and ended up with a point.

Leads against Derby County and Birmingham City have also been squandered and turned into draws. The fact of the matter is, Parkinson’s approach and the players’ mentality is just not right at the moment.

Parkinson insists he will stick with his process, but whether fans will stand by and watch ‘Parkyball’ for much longer is another matter. The veteran coach’s failure to adapt may well ultimately be his downfall.