25 June 2023 , 14:09
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Gary Neville has spoken about the rise of Wrexham under the ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
The two actors completed the takeover of the Welsh club in February 2021, and a lot has changed since then. Wrexham were officially promoted to the English Football League for the first time in 15 years last season.
A busy summer is likely to await both Reynolds and McElhenney as they prepare for the club’s first season back in the EFL for more than a decade. A large portion of that will include making new signings to get the club competing for promotion once again.
After Wrexham’s promotion was confirmed, Reynolds and McElhenney treated the Wrexham squad to an all-expenses paid celebratory trip to Las Vegas. The squad will be returning to the United States in July for pre-season friendlies against Chelsea and Manchester United.
While a large portion of Neville’s duties involves working as a pundit for Sky Sports, he also has other business ventures. One of them is being the co-owner of League Two club Salford City, who will be playing in the same division as Wrexham in the 2023/24 season.
Ryan Reynolds mispronounces name of new Wrexham signing in hilarious video
Neville has spoken about Reynolds and McElhenney’s influence on Wrexham and why it’s good for the sport of football. The former Manchester United captain went on to criticise the idea of the European Super League and why teams like Wrexham prove the value of the football pyramid.
“The dream of the pyramid in English football is that you can rise from the lower tiers and play in the Premier League,” Neville told The Guardian.
“Once we lose that, we lose everything. What clubs like Luton, Wrexham and Stockport have done is what makes football special.
Gary Neville has been the co-owner of Salford City since 2014 (James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)“We’re not franchise football. The Super League was an attack on those principles and it’ll never happen again.”
Both Wrexham and Salford’s players are currently enjoying their summer breaks before returning for pre-season training in the coming weeks. From there the preparations will begin for the start of the League Two campaign which gets underway in August.
Wrexham begin their first season back in the EFL with a home game at the SToK Racecourse - formerly known as Racecourse Ground - on August 5 against MK Dons. Salford, meanwhile, face an away trip to face Forest Green Rovers who are managed by former Everton striker and caretaker boss Duncan Ferguson.
The battle between Neville and Reynolds/McElhenney will see Wrexham face Salford in North Wales on October 14. The reverse fixture will take place a few months later on February 3.