Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson hailed the effort of his players as the Red Dragons recorded their first away win since being promoted to League Two last season as well as their first clean sheet of the campaign.
Aaron Hayden’s 56th-minute header meant Parkinson’s side took all three points in a fiercely contested local derby against Tranmere at Prenton Park
The visitors dominated the early stages of a frantic first half with Ollie Palmer, Elliott Lee and James McClean all coming close to opening the scoring.
Meanwhile, Rovers’ best chance fell to Kristian Dennis who almost latched onto a Regan Hendry cross in a rare sortie into the visitor’s box in the opening period.
It was a similar story after the break and Wrexham’s pressure eventually told when Hayden lost his man from a corner to nod the ball home in front of the 2,000 travelling fans.
Despite their dominance, the visitors were unable to add to their lead, despite coming close through Ollie Palmer while Rovers’ only real effort of note was Sam Taylor’s speculative effort which was tipped over by Wrexham goalkeeper Mark Howard.
It’s now five games unbeaten in the league for Wrexham while Ian Dawes’ Tranmere side have lost three on the bounce.
Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson said: “I’m very pleased, I thought it was a strong performance from us, particularly in the first half.
“We were excellent and passed the ball really well, we didn’t get the goal, but we didn’t feel sorry for ourselves and kept going.
“Obviously the home team is going to come back into it to a certain degree and we had enough good chances to win the game by more.
“1-0 wins are important as they show resilience and I thought we dug deep today when we had to and we pushed ourselves that extra yard to get the result.
“Everyone knows we had that spell early on where we were conceding goals and we had to rectify that and the first clean sheet of the season will do the defenders the world of good today.
“The lads have responded brilliantly today and to win a local derby with the support we’ve had here is an incredible feeling.”
Tranmere manager Ian Dawes said: “We knew going into the game it was two teams with two completely different styles of play.
“Wrexham are a very physical side who were going to go long and we knew they’d be relentless, so we knew we had to manage the game.
“We worked the ball well into the final third at times today but we just lacked that little bit of guile.
“We knew we’d have to be patient with the ball because we’d have been crazy to go direct against the three biggest centre backs in the league.
“I thought we defended set plays really well today and there was just one moment where they got a block on us and they scored the goal – that one moment has been the difference today.
“It hurts us today massively and the fans, staff and players will be hurting because it wasn’t just a game of football today, it was about that rivalry and we walk away gutted.”
Slot: Guardiola contract is 'good news' for Premier League
Arne Slot believes it is "good news" for the Premier League that Pep Guardiola has signed a contract extension with Manchester City.
The Spaniard signed a two-year extension with the reigning champions and will remain in the dugout at the Etihad until 2027.
He has won 18 major trophies in his time at City, including six Premier League titles, and twice beat Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool to the top-flight crown by a single point.
Guardiola averages 2.35 points per game in the Premier League, the highest rate of any manager (20+ matches). Indeed, he is so far ahead of the next highest (Alex Ferguson's 2.16), he could lose his next 26 league games in a row and would still be top.
Slot is yet to face City since taking over from Klopp at the start of the season, with the rivals' first meeting of the season set for December 1.
"It's good news for City and for the league because everyone wants the best managers and the best players over here," Slot said when asked about Guardiola's new contract.
"He is definitely one of the best managers, maybe the best manager of the league.
"He's won four titles in a row, so it's fair to say he's maybe the best manager in the league.
"On the other hand, they have so many quality players that, if he would have made the choice to leave, I wouldn't have expected them to end up bottom of the league next season."
Other Premier League managers echoed Slot's sentiment, with Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, who inflicted a fourth consecutive defeat on City before the international break, saying it is the "best thing that can happen to the Premier League".
"He is one of the best coaches in the world," Hurzeler said. "With his ideas, he always brings something new to the football stage, and it is always a challenge to compete against him.
"He always adapts quickly, always has new ideas and he can always win the game. I'm very happy because we can learn from him and to compete with him is a big, big experience."
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe added: "He's contributed so much to English football. He's revolutionised how a lot of teams play.
"I think he's incredibly talented, and it's good for the English game that he's still here.
"He will continue to develop and evolve his style, and people will potentially continue to follow that. From the competition side, I think it keeps the Premier League as the best in the world."
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with AC Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to AC Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A, but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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