After making an impression for the Red Dragons in January 2012, Curtis Obeng was a man in high demand; however, neither the club nor he quite worked out.
It’s safe to say that, to start with, Dean Saunders’ signings at Wrexham between 2008 and 2011 were a very mixed bag.
He did, however, find at least one young, gifted player early in his managerial career who would eventually be signed by a Premier League team.
Arriving at the Racecourse in August 2009, Curtis Obeng certainly looked like a hot prospect, having come through the Manchester City youth system and played for the England under-19s.
At just twenty years of age, it would take him a year or two to get used to the rough and tumble of football in the minor leagues.
When he did, though, Obeng’s quickness and accuracy in crossing the ball turned into a deadly weapon that helped the Red Dragons win the 2011–12 season.
In addition to his league success, he had an FA Cup run that attracted the attention of Swansea City manager Brendan Rodgers, who made a move for him in the January 2012 transfer window.
No one could really blame him for the move, but it was a major factor in Wrexham’s failure to win the championship that year, and unfortunately, Obeng’s time in south Wales was not successful.
Here, FLW examines the progression of his career at Wrexham and the subsequent events.
Wrexham AFC Archive, Curtis Obeng’s Wrexham career in numbers
| Curtis Obeng’s Wrexham career in numbers, as per Wrexham AFC Archive | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competition | Appearances | Goals |
| Conference | 88 (8) | 2 |
| FA Cup | 9 | 0 |
| Other | 5 | 0 |
Obeng’s “heated” Saunders relationship
Despite his reputation as a larger-than-life character, Dean Saunders continues to cause controversy among Wrexham supporters.
The former striker for Aston Villa and Liverpool was having trouble settling in when Obeng arrived.
A lot of his acquisitions weren’t cut out for non-league football, and he frequently lost his cool when his players didn’t perform up to his expectations.
Even though the two would sometimes exchange heated words, Obeng thinks Saunders eventually brought out the best in him.
When discussing his early years at Wrexham with Rob Ryan Red on the podcast, Obeng stated: “Even now, to this day, Dean is one of my favorite coaches that I’ve worked with.”
“It took me a few months to really adjust my game, and even during those early going, Dean and I had a few heated exchanges during training.
“But now that I’m older, I realize he was attempting to shape me into the kind of player you have to be to compete at that level.”
Brendan Rodgers takes notice of FA Cup form
Let’s fast-forward After a few years, Saunders, with Obeng as his first-choice right-back, had finally assembled a team strong enough to play in the top division of non-league football.
For the first time since they were eliminated from the EFL in the 2010–11 season, Wrexham advanced to the playoffs, but they were defeated by Luton in the semi-finals.
The team was well-positioned to push for promotion once more after making a few significant summer additions, including strikers Jake Speight and Danny Wright.
Under their irascible manager, the Red Dragons had a fantastic start to the 2011–12 season and were sitting second in the standings when Saunders left in September to join Championship team Doncaster Rovers.
Obeng truly started to shine under the guidance of player-manager Andy Morrell, emerging as one of the top assist-providers and tying opponents in knots with his pace.
But what really made him known that season was the club’s run in the FA Cup.
Following an outstanding performance in the second round to eliminate League One team Brentford, Wrexham faced Championship team Brighton in the third round, which would determine the outcome of the next two legs for Obeng and Morrell’s team.
They brought the Seagulls back to the Racecourse after holding them to a 1-1 draw at the Amex Stadium in January.
Over the course of 120 minutes, they performed the same feat repeatedly in a game where Obeng was among the top players.
Even though Wrexham ultimately lost on penalties, one spectator in the crowd seemed pleased with what he saw.
Brendan Rodgers, the Swansea City manager at the time, was actually there to watch his son Anton play for Brighton.
Obeng informed Rob. Ryan. Red: “The fact that Brendan’s son was a Brighton player was just a coincidental circumstance.” He attended both the away and home games.
“In the home game, I played well, and he started things almost immediately.
“I didn’t want to leave, but moving from the Conference to the Premier League is an offer you can’t refuse.”
Obeng’s action had consequences for both sides.
Obeng’s departure for the top flight put Wrexham in a sound financial position following a period of chaos under previous owners Ian Roberts and Geoff Moss.
The Wrexham Supporters Trust, the new custodians, were still battling fires, so it was nearly impossible to turn down Swansea’s reported £200,000 acquisition of Obeng.
Initially, Morrell was hoping to get the right-back back on loan for the remainder of the season, but the two teams were unable to reach a mutual understanding.
Instead, the Swans loaned their young player Danny Alfei to the Red Dragons. He did not, however, have the same effect as Obeng.
It was to be a major factor in their failure to secure automatic promotion that season, along with the departure of key midfield player Lee Fowler to title rivals Fleetwood Town.
Despite finishing the season with an impressive 98 points in second place, they were defeated by Luton once more in the play-off semifinals.
Other factors were also at work, such as Fleetwood’s hot streak and Jamie Vardy’s future as a striker for Leicester City.
Still, it’s difficult to deny that if Obeng in particular had stayed, they would have had a far better chance.
In light of the circumstances more recently, the man claims he doesn’t regret his choice, even though he was eager to return to Wrexham on loan.
It just doesn’t make sense, so no one could honestly say that they would have done that (rejected the move),” he stated. If things turn out differently, you may think, “Wow, that was a really smart move.”
“I regret not being able to return on loan; my agent and I pushed for this to happen, but it wasn’t happening.”
The loss of Rodgers wrecks Swansea’s career
Obeng was very excited to join Swansea at first because he believed Rodgers had laid out a clear path for him to get into the starting lineup.
Originally, the plan had been for him to train with the team for the final four months of the season in order to reach the necessary level.
After a preseason tour of the United States, he would be fully assimilated into the team and rotated alongside Spanish right-back Angel Rangel.
That was prior to Rodgers joining Liverpool in June 2012, when they made a move for him.
After Michael Laudrup replaced the original signer, Obeng’s career at Swansea never fully recovered, and he was eventually released in May 2015 without making an appearance for the first team.
Since then, he has had a somewhat of a journeyman career; in August 2023, he most recently signed with Bury in the North West Counties League.
Wrexham, meanwhile, would have to wait an additional eleven years to receive promotion from the National League. It was very much a case of what could have been for both parties.
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