Wayne Rooney and Tom Brady target Premier League break with Birmingham

Birmingham, UK—

With two sporting icons in the making, it’s no surprise Birmingham’s goals are high

With NFL legend Tom Brady as co-owner and now former Manchester United star Wayne Rooney as head coach, the English second division club is targeting promotion to the Premier League.

Looney, who the team added Thursday, is excited to work with seven-time Super Bowl champion Brady.

“It’s great to have him join the club. He has huge ambitions to take the club further,” Rooney said. “You can tell he is completely involved in the development of the club. “

Brady became a minority shareholder in Birmingham in August and serves as a senior adviser.

Rooney, 37, won five English league titles and another Champions League title as a Manchester United striker. As a coach, he has coached Derby County in England’s second division and D.C. United in Major League Soccer.

At Birmingham, he was convinced he could realize his ambition of leading a top-flight club, leading the Midlands side back to the Premier League for the first time since 2011.

“I want to be successful and obviously this club wants to be successful and we are on the same page,” he said. “That’s what the club and I are aiming for, to get this club back into the Premier League.

Birmingham finished sixth in the Second Division Championship.

Rooney resigned as D.C. United manager on Sunday after one season in charge, appointing Ashley Cole (formerly of Chelsea) and John O’Shea (formerly of Manchester United) as assistants to the coaching staff.