Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney speaking on the pitch of Wrexham's Raceourse Ground home stadium
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have recalled an awkward moment with David Beckham(Image: Sky Sports)
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Wrexham AFC co-owners and Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac (formerly McElhenney) have been notably visible figures around the Red Dragons recently as their team strives for a fairytale promotion to the Premier League.
Simultaneously, Phil Parkinson's squad has also been contending with the FA Cup, having made it to the fifth round of the competition, where they were pitted against five-time Premier League winners, Chelsea.
The Blues faced off against the Red Dragons on 7 March, with both Reynolds and Mac in the stands at the Racecourse Ground. They watched as their team ended regular time with ten men - following George Dobson's 93rd-minute dismissal - but level at 2-2.
However, Liam Rosenior's Chelsea ultimately claimed victory, with goals from Alejandro Garnacho and João Pedro in extra time, securing the Blues' place in the quarter-finals against Port Vale.
Fast forward to Wrexham's 2-0 Championship triumph over Welsh rivals Swansea City on Friday, which saw Reynolds and Mac co-commentating for Sky Sports. The pair took the chance before kickoff to recount an awkward, yet amusing, interaction with England legend David Beckham during their recent FA Cup disappointment.
As they familiarised themselves with their unique commentating microphones, Mac commented on the loud atmosphere under the floodlights at the STōK Cae Ras, noting that it would "be hard to hear you tonight, which is going to be very exciting."
Wrexham co-owners Rob Mac (left) and Ryan Reynolds speak to Sky Sports before the Sky Bet Championship match at the SToK Racecourse(Image: PA)
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Reynolds continued, "Well, normally we're doing a lot of lip reading here, but this thing is really getting in, cramping our style there.
"Yes, we'll do a lot of FaceTiming during the game," Mac remarked. "So in fact, during the Chelsea game, David Beckham was FaceTiming with us, and we're all trying to talk to each other, but he can't hear us."
Reynolds then described how the call eventually involved "a lot of like just big facial expressions and mind work."
Whilst the outcome may not have been what Reynolds, Mac, and the rest of Wrexham would have hoped for, the Deadpool star was eager to emphasise before kick-off that the magnitude of the occasion and how it ultimately unfolded still represented a watershed moment for the Red Dragons.
"That was a big, big moment, I think, for all of us. And the fact that we took Chelsea into extra time, it took them extra time, a red card, six subs to take us out, was a feeling I don't think I can...words are too clumsy to describe that feeling for this community and this town and this stadium," he said.
Reynolds added, "History is written by the victors, but on rare occasions, sometimes the loser walks out of the stadium victorious. And I felt like this club, this town, this team, everybody was in that moment together, and they felt like that was a win.
"Just a huge, undeniable win to have a match like that with that level of tension. The Chelsea players came here with absolute class. We hung out on the pitch afterwards, and just chatted, and I don't know, it felt like real humanity in that moment where everybody had a lot of respect for each other, and it was just beautiful."
Now with FA Cup aspirations shelved for another campaign and another Championship victory under their belt, Wrexham sits comfortably in sixth position in the league standings with just nine matches remaining. Currently holding the fourth and final play-off berth, they are six points ahead of both Southampton and Derby County in seventh and eighth respectively, though the Saints have a fixture in hand.
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