Newcastle United side set for trip to face Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham next season

Newcastle Under-21s have been drawn in Group B in the Northern section of the competition alongside Crewe Alexandra, Port Vale and Wrexham. The Young Magpies will face each side away in the group in an attempt to reach the knockout stage.

Newcastle were drawn in the same group as Port Vale during the 2019-20 campaign and in the same group as Crewe in 2020-21. Last season, United finished bottom of their group without scoring a goal.

The 2023-24 competition marks the return of Wrexham after 15-years away. The 2005 EFL Trophy winners were promoted back to the Football League after winning the National League with a record points total last season.

The Dragons have found themselves in the media spotlight in recent seasons following a takeover led by Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The documentary Welcome to Wrexham providing a behind the scenes look at the club and city following the takeover has also been a hit.

It will be a tough test at the Racecourse Ground for the Newcastle youngsters, who haven’t won a game in the competition since the 2018-19 season where they reached the last-16 of the competition before being knocked out by Sunderland’s first-team. That trophy run remains the only time a Newcastle side has made it out of the group since academy teams were allowed to enter the competition from 2016.

Bolton Wanderers are the current holders of the competition following a 4-0 win over Plymouth Argyle at Wembley Stadium back in April.

EFL Trophy group stage draw in full:

Northern Section

Group A: Barrow, Blackpool, Morecambe, Liverpool Under-21

Group B: Crewe Alexandra, Port Vale, Wrexham, Newcastle Under-21

Group C: Accrington Stanley, Carlisle United, Harrogate Town, Nottingham Forest Under-21

Group D: Fleetwood Town, Tranmere Rovers, Wigan Athletic, Leicester City Under-21

Group E: Bolton Wanderers, Salford City, Stockport County, Manchester United Under-21

Group F: Barnsley, Bradford, Grimsby, Manchester City Under-21

Group G: Derby County, Lincoln City, Notts County, Wolverhampton Wanderers Under-21

Group H: Burton Albion, Doncaster rovers, Mansfield Town, Everton Under-21

Southern Section

Group A: Forest Green Rovers, Shrewsbury Town, Walsall, Brighton & Hove Albion Under-21

Group B: Charlton Athletic, Crawley Town, Sutton United, Aston Villa Under-21

Group C: AFC Wimbledon, Stevenage, Wycombe Wanderers, Crystal Palace Under-21

Group D: Cambridge United, Colchester United, Peterborough United, Tottenham Hotspur Under-21

Group E: Gillingham, Leyton Orient, Portsmouth, Fulham Under-21

Group F: MK Dons, Northampton Town, Oxford United, Chelsea Under-21

Group G: Exeter City, Reading, Swindon Town, Arsenal Under-21

Group H: Bristol Rovers, Cheltenham Town, Newport County, West Ham United Under-21