Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney took a dig at Southampton after featuring in a social media advert that mocked their EFL Championship rivals' Spygate controversy.
Their Welsh outfit play host to the Saints on Saturday and the Red Dragons will be out for revenge. They suffered a 5-1 defeat at the Racecourse Ground last season which ultimately cost them a place in the playoffs.
Tonda Eckert's men had advanced to Wembley after beating Middlesbrough in the semi-finals. That win came after Boro had reported an individual with a smartphone secretly filming their closed training session at Rockliffe Park.
What Was Southampton Spygate
Southampton were denied their place in the final as the EFL decided to remove them from the playoffs and allow Boro to instead take their place. Investigations revealed that manager Eckert authorised repeated spying programs.
The club have admitted to spying on three teams during last season, Middlesbrough, Oxford United and Ipswich Town. Eckert has continued on as the Saints' coach but his future is uncertain as the FA weigh up a punishment for the German tactician.
Eckert could face a fine or a short ban or even a year-long ban much like the one FIFA handed former Canada manager Bev Priestman. If the latter were to occur it's likely that he'll be dismissed.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac Mock Spygate
Wrexham owners Reynolds and McElhenney couldn't help but poke fun at the south coast outfit's espionage. The Hollywood actors used the spying incidents in an advertisement which has gone viral.
The duo walk into shot from behind a tree before Reynolds says: "Today for no important reason we want to talk about the importance of privacy."
McElhenney added: "Specifically how to prevent spies from seeing what you're doing on the internet... And this message isn't just for people in Wrexham, or Oxford, or Ipswich
Reynolds then mentions Middlesbrough before making an interesting comment about their front of shirt sponsor Firefox: "An organisation that actually respects your privacy."
It's fair to say the ad has gone down well with most EFL fans who found it humorous and an inventive way to promote their sponsor. The fixture between Wrexham and Southampton already felt like one of the biggest games of the season thus far but this has added more interest.
The Red Dragons currently sit 19th in the Championship while the Saints are ninth. Reynolds and McElhenney have overseen the Welsh outfit's rise from the National League to the second-tier of English football in just three years and are eager to land in the Premier League.
