Winger Ryan Longman has joined Wrexham from Hull City
RYAN LONGMAN came close to signing for Wrexham last summer but the winger wasn’t going to miss out on a move to The Racecourse for a second time.
The 24-year-old, who can also play as a wing-back, has joined from Hull City for an undisclosed fee and put pen to paper on a contract keeping him the Reds until the end of the 2026-27 season, with the option of an additional year.
After making the switch to Hull initially on loan from Brighton before making the move permanent in January 2022, Longman made 81 appearances in the Championship for the Tigers, scoring seven goals, but the time was right for a new challenge.
“It was a joint decision to leave,” said Longman. “It was time for me to leave Hull after what I would say was a pretty successful time there and I was ready for my next challenge.
“I was probably ready for this move in the summer, Wrexham looked at me but it didn’t quite get over the line.
“When the interest came back in January it was a no-brainer for me and I’ve put pen to paper.”
Longman has dropped down to League One where Wrexham are challenging for promotion and he hopes he will soon return to the Championship with his new club.
“Four months and hopefully I will be back up there,” he said.
“I am going to try my best to get this club in the Championship as soon a as possible, which is the goal this season.”
Although a winger, Longman has also played up front during his career and says being versatile will benefit Wrexham.
“In my early stages at Hull, I played wing-back quite a lot,” he said. “I really enjoyed it there and did very well.
“I like to create chances and I like to get fans off their feet.
“I am a versatile player, at Wimbledon I played up front with Ollie Palmer and scored a few goals.
“I really enjoyed my loan spell there, that was in League One so I am hoping to replicate that with Wrexham and get a few goals and assists to help them push for promotion.”
Longman, who spent last season on loan at Millwall, was in the stands on Thursday to see Wrexham draw 1-1 with Birmingham City in the top of the table clash at The Racecourse.
The Reds pushed for a winner in the second half and although they had to settle for a point, he was happy with what he saw.
“I was really impressed with how the lads played,” said Longman, who could make his Wrexham debut in tomorrow’s home game against Stevenage.
“I could tell it was a team that wanted to work for this club and work for each other which is a good foundation how to get promoted.
“It was disappointing not to take three points but we have got to look to Stevenage and hopefully get three points then.
“I am really looking forward to it and I will look to help the team as much as possible.”
Longman joins former Hull team-mate Andy Cannon at Wrexham who are owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, and he added: “Wrexham caught my eye when Andy made the move here.
“Since them, I have kept an eye on all the things going on and it seems exciting, a big project and something I am really looking forward to being a part of.”
