Featured Image Credit: Wrexham AFC
Topics: Wrexham, EFL Championship, Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney, Conor Coady, Leicester City
Ryan Smart
Topics: Wrexham, EFL Championship, Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney, Conor Coady, Leicester City
Conor Coady could smash Wrexham's wage structure after completing a £2 million transfer from Leicester.
The 32-year-old England international has finalised a move to the newly-promoted Championship side, signing a two-year deal with the option of a third.
The Red Dragons have already completed permanent deals for midfielder George Thomason, striker Ryan Hardie and left-back Liberato Cacace this window.
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Goalkeeper Danny Ward has also arrived as a free agent after his Leicester contract expired.
Cacace became Wrexham's club-record signing when he joined from Empoli, with the reported £2.5 million fee smashing the £1.2 million they spent to sign Sam Smith from Reading in January.
The Coady deal will, therefore, fall marginally short of that figure, but Wrexham will have had to take his significant wage into key consideration.
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According to Capology, Coady earns a cool £75,000 per week at Leicester, making him among the club's highest-paid players.
However, the Liverpool-born defender has made just 34 appearances in two years, with 22 of those coming in Leicester's Premier League relegation season last term.
It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the Foxes would want to get Coady's wage off the books.
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Prior to this summer, Wrexham's top earner was former Burnley and Southampton striker Jay Rodriguez.
He signed a contract with the Red Dragons worth £15,000 per week in January, as per the Daily Mirror.
Wrexham's situation adds an interesting dynamic to this summer's EFL transfer window, given their financial power under Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and the high-profile nature of the club.
The Red Dragons significantly outspent other League One clubs, with the exception of Birmingham, last season, but the top end of the Championship is a whole other playing field financially.
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As a result, Phil Parkinson's side have had to balance their heavy transfer outlays, including a reported £7.5 million offer for Ipswich forward Nathan Broadhead, with the increase in salaries.
But part of that hurdle appears to have been jumped over already with the signing of creative midfielder Lewis O'Brien from Nottingham Forest.
The 26-year-old, who spent part of last season on loan at Swansea, was reported to be earning £50,000 per week with the Premier League club, though it is unclear as to whether he has taken any significant salary cut to move to Wales.