What Wrexham can expect from Lewis Brunt

Wrexham are adding some depth to their backline by signing Lewis Brunt. The 23-year-old defender spent last season at Leicester City and despite his age has plenty of experience at higher levels.

He became their second major signing weeks after the club announced they’d inked goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo to a permanent deal during the summer transfer window. Here’s some information on Brunt and why he fits into the Red Dragons’ current setup.

Lewis Brunt’s footballing career

For somebody in his early 20s, Lewis Brunt has had quite a football career thus far. He trained at the Aston Villa academy in Birmingham, where he was born.

After featuring for the U-18 and U-23 Villa teams, he left on loan to National League side Gloucester City.

In August 2021, he signed with Leicester City, making his first-team debut in January 2022 during an FA Cup clash with Watford. Months later, he made his first Premier League appearance for the Foxes against Tottenham Hotspur.

Last August, he signed a season-long loan deal with Mansfield Town in League Two, and the club planned to bring him on permanently.

Fortunately for Phil Parkinson’s men, Leicester rejected an initial bid by Mansfield to sign him, opening the door for the Welsh club to bring him in. Brunt signed a three-year deal with Wrexham for an undisclosed fee.

What are Brunt’s attributes?

Brunt has plenty of attractive attributes that should benefit Wrexham in League One next season. He’s listed as a centre-back but can also play as a defensive midfielder, right-back, and left-back. Last season, Nigel Clough usually employed him in a back four with Mansfield Town.

Among Brunt’s biggest skill sets is his ability to play out from the back, with a pass accuracy per game of 81% last season.

In 11 of the 34 appearances made by Brunt at Mansfield Town last season, The Stags held their opponents off the scoresheet.

There’s still work to do when it comes to his aerial duels, with Brunt winning 64% of them last season, while he was strong at ball recoveries in 2023-24.

Overall, though, he has a ton of versatility that should come in handy with Wrexham in 2024-25.

How will Wrexham utilise him?

There are several ways that Wrexham could utilise a player with the skills of Brunt.

Ben Tozer, Aaron Hayden, and Jordan Tunnicliffe’s departures have left a void in the Red Dragons’ backline.

Brunt might not be a regular fixture in the starting XI to begin with, but he’ll still get his share of minutes throughout the campaign.

Max Cleworth, Eoghan O’Connell and Tom O’Connor were mainstays in the Wrexham defence last season, and they’ll be called upon throughout the League One campaign.

However, Brunt would be a reliable option when Parkinson may need some fresh legs to preserve points in the second half and Brunt could log more minutes in other cup competitions.

Last season, Brunt showed that he is very adaptable and can develop continuity quickly while showing tremendous composure under pressure. Brunt is like a Swiss army knife that could fill in for injured players and provide a spark off the bench.

He’s a positive addition to this squad and could be a solid contributor in various capacities next season.