Ryan Reynolds & Rob McElhenney pay £3k-a-week more than rivals in transfer bids – with fellow EFL chairman revealing how Wrexham are able to boss market

The Red Dragons have been able to outspend many of their opponents en route to League One. Back-to-back promotions have lifted them out of the National League and into the third tier of English football for the first time in 20 years.

The playing field is now starting to level out, as Wrexham compete with the likes of Birmingham and Huddersfield, but Hollywood co-owners are still able to make the funds available that allow certain foes to be fended off.

That was the case when pursuing Leicester defender Lewis Brunt – who impressed on loan at Mansfield last season – with Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony telling his ‘The Hard Truth’ podcast of how Wrexham beat him to a much sought-after defender: “The ones we were in for, we had one signed, pretty much done, and at the last minute, obviously our Welsh friends came in and swooped in and offered him, I think it was £3,000 more a week than we had already agreed with the player. By the way, fair play to them, that’s their prerogative to do that, we’ve done that over the years with other clubs. The player chose them, no problem, I’ve got no issue with that.”

Wrexham have also signed Arthur Okonkwo as a free agent this summer, while bringing in Brunt, George Dobson, Callum Burton and Sebastian Revan. There may be more business to come as the Red Dragons return to Wales from their pre-season tour of North America.