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Kieran Maguire: Birmingham City owners trying to copy Wrexham after latest twist
The new owners at Birmingham City are trying to emulate Wrexham by increasing the profile of the club through celebrities.
That is the opinion of finance expert Kieran Maguire, who spoke exclusively to Football Insider about the change of management at St Andrew’s this week.
The Blues were taken over by Shelby Companies Ltd, a subsidiary of US-based investment group Knighthead Capital Management this summer.
NFL star Tom Brady was also announced as a minority investor in the club in August, and the American star has traveled over to St Andrew’s to attend matches.
Despite the club sitting sixth in the Championship this week, the new owners decided to sack manager John Eustace and replace him with former Man United star Wayne Rooney.
The decision was met with controversy by fans and pundits, with Maguire telling Football Insider that the Birmingham City board wanted a ‘showbiz’ manager in charge.
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Maguire believes the decision to have a change of management at Birmingham was because of ‘publicity purposes’.
“The change in management has been done for publicity purposes,” Maguire told Football Insider’s Sean Fisher.
“It’s very similar to their decision to create a partnership with Tom Brady and the links that surround that.
“I suspect Brady put in close to zero into the club, but being affiliated with him has increased the profile of the club.
“Ultimately, I think the new owners at Birmingham are trying to emulate a mini Wrexham by taking these decisions.“
In other news, Birmingham City now set sights on ex-Man City transfer chief Mike Rigg