Wrexham pulled off £8m transfer with 'old-fashioned' tactic almost never seen in football now

Wrexham pulled off £8m transfer with 'old-fashioned' tactic almost never seen in football now

Wrexham beat off competition from a number of rivals to sign highly-rated Manchester City defender Callum Doyle, and the club's CEO has lifted the lid on how they did it

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney's Wrexham used old school methods to sign Callum Doyle (Image: Jan Kruger/Getty Images)

Wrexham chief executive Michael Williamson has shared how adopting a "traditional" approach aided the club in securing a crucial signing.

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The Red Dragons recently confirmed the acquisition of Manchester City defender Callum Doyle on a four-year contract that could reportedly be worth up to £8million. The Championship newcomers, owned by Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, successfully fended off competition from several rivals to sign the highly-regarded 21-year-old.

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Doyle made his debut for Wrexham on Tuesday night, helping them stage a comeback to defeat Preston North End 3-2 at Deepdale in the second round of the Carabao Cup. The England Under-21 international delivered an impressive performance, with a late goal from Wales striker Kieffer Moore securing victory for Phil Parkinson's team.

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Former Inter Milan executive Williamson has now revealed the strategy Wrexham employed to finalise the deal. The American CEO explained that instead of exchanging emails or WhatsApp messages with City officials, he opted to visit the Premier League giants' Etihad campus in person to seal the deal.

Williamson emphasised the importance of using traditional methods in enabling Wrexham to pull off a coup.

In an interview with the club's official YouTube channel about the Doyle transfer, he said: "In that case, I actually went up to Man City's campus there, and sat down around the table.

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Wrexham defender Callum Doyle, who joined from Man City following a visit by the club's CEO (Image: Jess Hornby/Getty Images)

"It was a little bit of an old-fashioned way, instead of exchanging emails back and forth, or WhatsApp messages, we sat around the table and worked out the deal the old-fashioned way over a cup of coffee.

"Those things are important for us to get across the line. In that case, he had other clubs that were looking at him, but that's just a testament of what we have here and have built as a foundation here with this club - we're a place that top players want to come to."

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Doyle was also understood to have drawn attention from Scottish outfit Rangers and Sheffield United prior to his switch to Wrexham. The defender came through City's youth system but managed only two first-team outings for the club.

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However, Doyle did experience triumph during loan spells away from City, assisting Sunderland's rise from League One in 2022 and reaching the Championship play-off final with Coventry the following year.

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He subsequently moved on a temporary basis to Leicester, where he once again helped his side secure automatic promotion, this time to the Premier League, before spending last season with Norwich.

Despite his tender years, Doyle has already accumulated close to 100 Championship appearances. It has been suggested that geography played a crucial role in the Manchester-born player's choice to join Wrexham.

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Doyle became the Hollywood-backed club's tenth new signing during the summer window. Regardless of the substantial player turnover, Parkinson remains eager to further strengthen his squad before Monday's deadline.

Following last Saturday's 2-2 home draw with Sheffield Wednesday, he said: "There's bits and pieces going on. We'll take stock of this and review everything. We've got players on the treatment table we need to get back fit, that's clear to see.

"The squad is decent as it stands, but we'll just review this game and decide. One or two players may be going and one or two going in. We'll have a look at that over the next 48 hours."

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