The efforts taken to make Wrexham AFC what it is today are exemplary. They moved from fighting to survive in the higher levels of the English semi-professional league to being one of the most talked about clubs in lower-tier soccer. However, the old times and memories, much before Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s transformation occurred, still remain for the club. A former Wrexham AFC coach recently recalled his old student, who is now the head of Wrexham’s soccer academy, for being slow during his playing days. However, in an awkward comeback, the star also took a chance to open up about how his time at the club was during that time.

Tony Merola, the Executive Director of Wrexham’s academy, hit back at former coach Brian Flynn humorously after his recent jibe. According to reports, Merola said, “I was fast, Brian Flynn doesn’t know a fast player when he sees one because he was never fast,” stating that Flynn did not realize his talent. It was the former Welsh international who gave the star his debut but claimed that his speed was the reason for his early departure from the club. Merola’s debut dates way back to 1994, when he was 17 years old.

On the other hand, Flynn was the longest-serving manager for the third-oldest club in the world, coaching it from 1989 to 2001. He was reported to have said, “He was a talented young player. Small, stocky striker with a knack of scoring goals but unfortunately, he didn’t have any pace whatsoever and that was lacking so he didn’t quite make it with us,” giving a glimpse of how Merola was.

Tony Merola explains what went wrong for him at Wrexham

Meanwhile, the Wrexham Texans leader also stated that it went well for him initially when he made progress from the youth team to the senior team. The 48-year-old stated that he shared the dressing room with some senior stars who beat Arsenal in the FA Cup. But he feels that his popularity and distractions, including a hernia surgery, caused his exit. Merola also confessed that chilling out was a bigger priority for him than facing the challenges on the first team.

However, the former striker has now moved on to coaching and has been successful with it. Wrexham Texans FC is an academy based on the principles of the senior club, Wrexham AFC, which trains soccer aspirants. Merola is also credited with promoting the club in the USA much before Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mc Elhenney did. And with Wrexham growing in stature, he could play a role in raising young talent for the Hollywood stars’ team.