Ryan Hardie eyes Wrexham January exit: Plymouth Argyle, Swansea City and Barnsley must be on red alert | OneFootball

Ryan Hardie may be on his way out of North Wales, and these three teams should be on high alert for a move

Wrexham's summer transfer window was one of the more impressive ones on paper, as a wealth of players with Championship experience made their way to the SToK Cae Ras.

Unfortunately, with 13 new additions, alongside the better players from the squad which came up from League One, there have been a few people who have been left by the wayside, Ryan Hardie being one of them.

The 28-year-old was one of the first summer arrivals at Wrexham after the Red Dragons paid £700,000 to bring him back to the Championship from recently relegated Plymouth Argyle, and so far this season, he's played more minutes in EFL Cup action than he has in the Championship.

Evidently, Hardie's not been in Phil Parkinson's eyeline for regular league minutes, and according to an exclusive report from Football League World, he's angling for a swift move away this January in search of game time.

If he does, these three sides should be at the front of the line to acquire his services.

Plymouth Argyle

Whilst unlikely, given how poorly Plymouth have started their return to League One in the 2025/26 campaign, there'll always be the chance that the former Pilgrim returns home just months after departing the club for Wrexham.

Especially given how highly-respected Hardie is among Argyle fans, after he led the line throughout their journey from League Two to the Championship.

Over the five-and-a-half years he spent at Home Park, he made 248 appearances, scoring 74 goals, including the decisive one from the spot in their famous FA Cup fourth round win over Liverpool last season.

Argyle may reside in the relegation zone in League One, and have one of the most exciting strikers in the division currently up front in Lorent Tolaj, but if Tom Cleverley could get the two working off of each other, their chances of climbing out of the bottom four and competing in an unpredictable League One would drastically increase.

It would all depend on whether Hardie sees himself as a Championship-level footballer still, and whether he'd want to swap being on the bench at Wrexham to being part of a League One relegation battle.

But Plymouth fans will always have some hope that he may return in January.

Barnsley

Hardie may turn down a move to Plymouth due to their position in League One, but a return to the third tier may be something that he has to do to ensure regular game time, as there may not be many teams in the Championship who may be willing to take on a squad player at Wrexham.

If it is a League One side he goes to, and if he doesn't want to partake in a battle to avoid the drop, then perhaps Barnsley could be a great move for him.

The Tykes don't have much depth up front, with David McGoldrick doing the majority of the heavy lifting, and Davis Keillor-Dunn deputising up there at times too.

Despite this, Barnsley aren't exactly starved for goals, as several widemen and midfielders like to chip in for Conor Hourihane's side alongside Keillor-Dunn, who leads the league in scoring.

But the Tykes could benefit from having an experienced goalscorer at League One level to perhaps take the goalscoring weight off the likes of Reyes Cleary and Luca Connell.

Adding legs up top could give Barnsley that extra boost to maintain a charge for the top two, and Hardie would certainly provide that.

Swansea City

However, if the 28-year-old Scotsman does see himself as having a future in the Championship, then a move from North to South Wales to Swansea City may be a good fit for him, too.

Vitor Matos has a lot of work to do on the attacking front with this Swansea side, who average the lowest expected goals and big chances created in the second tier, and amongst the lowest shots on target per match.

Despite Zan Vipotnik leading the way, the Slovenian can't be relied on to score all the goals necessary to keep the Swans in the division.

Therefore, a move for Hardie could give Swansea a much-needed pair of hands when it comes to putting the ball in the back of the net throughout the second half of the season.