CITY will still have a “target on their back” next season - even with ambitious Wrexham revving up the competition.

The Welsh club have just announced a new shirt sponsorship deal with United Airlines, another headline-grabbing move on their return to League Two after a 15-year absence.

Phil Parkinson’s side will be a force to be reckoned with under their Hollywood backing of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.

But Ryan Sparks insists that will not affect the expectation levels at Valley Parade.

“Wrexham are a very attractive team for the neutral,” he said. “Phil is obviously a fantastic manager, and they are going to be hard to stop.

“We’ll do our best to compete with them. We’re not planning on anything else other than to go straight back at it because that’s the way we are.

“We feel the weight of expectation and we’re ready for that.

“I think the team will rise to the challenge - and we must recruit to that as well.

“We must recruit players who can handle it. It’s going to be a tough league and the target remains on Bradford City’s back, without a doubt.

“That is the nature of this club being in the Fourth Division and we can’t shy away from that.”

Wrexham and Notts County both topped 100 points in regaining their league status and will be eyeing instant success back in the EFL.

The presence of two more big clubs on the scene has intensified the recruitment race.

City chief executive Sparks added: “There will be lots of competition. You can tell that in the market, although it is a little slow at the moment in terms of actual movement.

“Whereas last year, there was four or five teams, there are maybe up to a dozen teams competing for the big players in the league.

“People talk about recruitment like we all have our own version of it. We do up to a point, but we all look at the same data and have the same desires.

“Some have got different backdrops, us being one of those, and some have different pressures.

“Looking for good players is naturally going to come with competition, and we’ve seen some of that already."

There will be more spotlight on the fourth tier because of the exposure Wrexham will bring. For Sparks, the increasing competition highlights the power of the EFL.

“The opposition is what it is,” he said. “The EFL is getting stronger all the time.

“It’s a desirable pyramid that’s becoming global as it develops. As a country, we should be proud of the EFL because it’s a very competitive league structure from top to bottom.

“You look at the teams in League One and the Championship and it’s unbelievable.

“You’re not far off every club in the Championship having been in the Premier League.

“It’s tough and that effect is trickling all the way down. Equally, it’s pushing up from beneath.

“People are acquiring clubs in the National League and investing in them. In Wrexham’s case, they are working to maximise their potential and growing rapidly, globally.

“That naturally means our competition is going to intensify but we aren't really focusing on our opponents. We’ve got to look after ourselves and we know we can be better."