An upset Tom Brady has labelled Eli Manning’s decision to wear a Wrexham shirt ahead of their clash against Birmingham as ‘bulls***’.
In perhaps the most glamorous EFL fixture of ever, Birmingham, who are backed financially by Brady, take on the Welsh side, who are owned by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
Brady invested in the Blues in August 2023 and owns a 3.3 per cent stake in the League One club
Ahead of the Monday night clash at St Andrew’s, live on talkSPORT 2, the fire between the two sides was stoked when Wrexham posted a picture of Manning wearing a replica home shirt.
Manning and Brady are both bona fide NFL legends in their own right with nine Super Bowl triumphs between them, but the two titles Manning won saw him get the better of Brady’s New England Patriots.
And although both are retired from the NFL game it seems as though there’s still more than an element of competition between them.
“Yeah, that was BS,” told talkSPORT when asked about Manning wearing the Wrexham shirt.
“I didn’t like that one bit, but that’s okay. He’s been my kryptonite in some big games.
“But you know what? I feel like I’ve been a part of a lot of Monday night football in America. Monday night football in the UK. If you love football and you love competition, this is the place you want to be.
Both Birmingham and Wrexham have made good starts to their respective seasons with the home side sixth in League One with ten points from four games.
Meanwhile, Wrexham can go three points clear at the top of the table if they’re to get the win.
That’s not a result Brady’s considering though as he suggested the Manning Wrexham shirt post is something they could regret if Birmingham get the win.
“I’ve been working on a few rebuttals and he’s engaged a few other of my friends as well,” Brady continued. “But we have a very healthy rival with Eli and with Rob and Ryan.
“I’ve been friends with them for a long time. And again, I think they I’m really impressed by their ownership and what they’ve done with with Wrexham and the community there.
“They’re very engaged. And again, they feel very similar to what we do. We’re here to support this club, the fans. This is their club and we’re here to play our role.”
Brady purchased his 3.3 per cent stake in the Blues in August 2023, with the club later getting relegated from the Championship last season.
However, Brady insists the target is to get Birmingham back winning again.
NFL legend Brady is part of the consortium that purchased Birmingham last year
“I think I’m very excited about actually being on the sideline and watching these other players with their own ambition to go out here and succeed for themselves and their families,” Brady said.
“They want to change the trajectory of their life. They want to change the trajectory of their family’s lives, of what this community is all about.
“And that really comes down to their performance and winning. So how can we help them achieve that? Well, I believe there’s a physical, mental, emotional component to all these players that we can tap into.
“And we want to support them in all those areas so that when they take the pitch, they’re happy, they’re excited, their bodies are feeling great.
I believe we have a great manager and Chris [Davies], and he’s out there every day watching them perform on the training grounds.
“And they’re doing a great job thus far. And we just want to keep continuing to play our role.”
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