Former Cambridge United striker Paul Mullin has joined fifth-tier side Wrexham, amid previous interest from Championship clubs Blackburn Rovers, Middlesbrough and Preston North End.

The 26-year-old drew attention from the second tier after scoring 32 goals in 46 League Two appearances and was one of the main reasons why Cambridge won automatic promotion to League One.

However, Mullin decided to leave the Abbey Stadium on the expiration of his contract three weeks ago and was expected to sign for a Championship side or a team competing at the top end of the third tier, with Charlton Athletic also said to be interested in the forward.

But in a surprising turn of events, Mullin will now drop down a tier to Wrexham and will be hoping to guide the Welsh side into the EFL after the Red Dragons narrowly missed out on a place in the play-offs last season.

The League Two Player of the Year joins on a three-year contract, linking up with former Bradford City, Bolton Wanderers and Sunderland boss Phil Parkinson.

This is a blow for Blackburn Rovers who could be set to lose Adam Armstrong this summer and have just seen former target Jerry Yates sign a new contract at Blackpool, whilst Middlesbrough and Preston North End will still be on the search to bolster their attack ahead of the new season.

Unfortunately for them, Mullin won't be joining any of the trio after putting pen to paper on a deal at the Racecourse Ground.

The Verdict:

This is possibly the strangest signing of the summer so far.

Although it's an exciting chance to work with Phil Parkinson and there's a real prospect of the 26-year-old matching or bettering his goal tally from last season, you would have thought he'd guaranteed a move to the Championship or League One after breaking records last season with his prolific form.

Perhaps this move is more financially beneficial, better for his family and/or better for his mental wellbeing, but it does seem like a strange move from the outside and it will be interesting to see if he can replicate what he did in the 2020/21 campaign.

With Parkinson and Mullin as two key figures at the club though, maybe the great chance of winning promotion again was too much of a tempting offer to the forward and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him back in the fourth tier again very shortly with his new side.