Wrexham go to Oxford United on Tuesday with their Championship playoff push still alive, but with little margin left for error. Phil Parkinson's side sit seventh in the table, two points behind Hull City in the final playoff place and only a point ahead of Derby County with three matches remaining.
Last weekend's 2-0 win over Stoke City kept Wrexham in the chase and offered Parkinson something to build on after he made four changes to his starting lineup. Danny Ward, Dom Hyam, Josh Windass and Sam Smith all came in, and Ward now looks set to keep his place in goal for the trip to Oxford.
The visit to Oxford carries a different kind of pressure. Wrexham have won just one of their last four away matches, and they are going up against a side that sits 22nd and is fighting to stay clear of the bottom end of the table. For Wrexham, the task is simple enough to state and harder to finish: stay close enough to the top six to make the final weeks count.
The Championship's top two teams go straight up to the Premier League, while clubs finishing third through sixth go into the playoffs for the final promotion place. That is the line Wrexham are chasing now, and every result matters more because there are only three matches left to change their fate. Parkinson may only tweak the side again, with Lewis O'Brien a candidate to come in for Ollie Rathbone, while Dan Scarr's no-nonsense approach could matter against Oxford's more physical style.
Wrexham's position leaves them in sight of the playoffs, but not in control of them. Tuesday is one of the few chances left to turn pressure into points, and another slip would make the climb much steeper.