Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney sent warning as Wrexham tipped to 'spend aggressively'
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney sent warning as Wrexham tipped to 'spend aggressively'
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Wrexham's Hollywood owners have been warned they will need to spend big to achieve success if they reach the Championship. The Red Dragons, owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, are currently on course for an astonishing third successive promotion as they sit just three points outside the automatic promotion places in League One. Phil Parkinson boosted his team's chances last week after beating second-tier side Oxford United to the signature of Hull City winger Ryan Longman.
The deal, worth an estimated £500,000, was a display of Wrexham's financial might under the stewardship of Reynolds and McElhenney, with more incomings possible during the January transfer window. However, a football finance expert has now cautioned that they will need to reach into their pockets even further if the North Wales club does reach the Championship.
Wrexham are fighting for promotion alongside League One's biggest spenders Birmingham City, who count NFL legend Tom Brady as a minority investor. Dr Rob Wilson, a professor of economics at Sheffield Hallam University, has been watching the progress of both sides carefully and believes key decisions will have to be made on how to compete in the Championship in light of the league's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
He said Wrexham in particular may have to settle for consolidation, with Birmingham having the far greater Championship pedigree. Dr Wilson told Slingo: “In the Championship, Birmingham and Wrexham will be smaller fish in a much bigger pond because particularly with clubs that have come out of the Premier League that have had the parachute payments, it's very, very difficult to compete with those.
