Tom Brady has managed to convince a former Derby County star to join him at Birmingham City.
American owners are becoming more and more common in the EFL, with several of the top Premier League clubs backed by US-based businessmen.
This phenomenon is not exclusive to the top flight though, with a number of sides in the lower divisions now having American owners/investors.
One of the latest US names to dip their toe into the English footballing world is former NFL star, Tom Brady.
On August 3rd, 2023, Brady became a minority owner and chairman of a new advisory board at Birmingham City.
The Blues were relegated to League One this past season, with Paul Warne and Derby County heading in the other direction.
However, an ex-Ram has now joined Brady at St Andrew’s, taking up a coaching role for Birmingham City.
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Former Derby County star Tom Huddlestone joins Birmingham City
Tom Huddlestone began his career in Derbyshire, joining the Rams academy as a youngster before being promoted to the senior side in 2003.
The ex-midfielder left Pride Park in 2005 for Tottenham Hotspur and returned to the club for a second stint in 2017.
All told, Huddlestone notched 185 appearances for Derby in all competitions, scoring three and assisting four.
Most recently, the 37-year-old spent two years with Manchester United’s U21 side, playing and acting as a coach.
He then joined Wigan Athletic over the summer, working as a coach for the League One outfit but has now swapped Wigan for Birmingham, joining Brady’s club as a member of their first-team staff.
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Chris Davies gives verdict on Tom Huddlestone after Birmingham City move
Huddlestone’s previous club, Wigan, have struggled in the early stages of 2024/25, sitting 15th in the third tier.
However, Birmingham have enjoyed a prolific start to the season and are joint-top of League One along with Wrexham.
This new role should allow Huddlestone to develop his coaching skills and Birmingham manager Chris Davies has already praised the former Derby star, as per Derbyshire Live.
He said: “Tom is an excellent coach and a great addition to our First Team Staff as we look to build on our start to the 2024/25 season.
“He has vast playing experience, which has been added to by coaching roles he has held with both club and international teams. This will provide a different dynamic to the group and I expect the squad to feed off his knowledge of the game.
“We are all looking forward to working with him and wish him every success at Birmingham City.”