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2 hours ago
5
It was everything an FA Cup tie should be, as six goals were scored, one player was sent off and a Premier League side received a huge scare, requiring villainous technology to save them from a likely penalty shootout. The only thing missing was an upset but Chelsea will not mind triumphing against Wrexham in a classic of the genre.
Goals from Sam Smith and Callum Doyle twice gave the Championship side the lead, only for an Arthur Okonkwo own goal and Josh Acheampong’s strike to take the game into extra time. Garnacho, who had earlier been the victim of a red-card challenge from George Dobson, volleyed home the winner. If not for the video assistant referee, the match would probably have gone to penalties but Lewis Blunt’s equaliser was ruled out by the finest of margins. João Pedro added a fourth in added time to remove any lasting jeopardy.
After 18 minutes without either side having a shot, there was little indication of what was to come. Wrexham brought the element of surprise to the fixture when Doyle pinged the ball 50 yards down the pitch, which the Chelsea centre-back Benoit Badiasshile did not anticipate and misjudged. Smith knew it was coming and impressively took the pass down, forcing Robert Sánchez into a decision; the goalkeeper panicked and backtracked, giving the one-time Bishop’s Stortford striker plenty of space to run into, before slotting home. Cue shots of the Wrexham co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac in the crowd, while the other 9,000 became delirious.
It was against the run of play but Chelsea had not threatened in the final third, looking ponderous when in dangerous positions. Pedro Neto was the only promising outlet, playing wide on the right. He was eager to lead attacks and sent in a cross for Garnacho on the opposite side, but he managed to volley the ball backwards.
The isolated Liam Delap had toiled for 40 minutes without the hope of a chance being created. The striker took creative matters into his own hands, holding off and spinning Max Cleworth on the halfway line, driving for the box and playing in Garnacho, whose shot – the second on target of the match – was cleared off the line by George Thomason, only for the ball to hit the unfortunate goalkeeper Okonkwo and bounce into the net. Chelsea’s performance had not deserved any luck but they got it.
Delap had greater success in the second half, giving Dominic Hyam a more difficult time with his physicality. This may have influenced Liam Rosenior’s decision to remove the centre-back Mamadou Sarr and send on a second striker in Marc Guiu to provide support as Chelsea sought to test Wrexham’s physical and mental fatigue.
Wrexham, however, were not afraid, bringing on a trio of attacking subs. Kieffer Moore brought added height, which concerned Chelsea, and the striker must have thought his team had done their job when Dobson’s corner was cleared to Josh Windass on the edge of the box, from where he thrashed in a shot, which Doyle cunningly flicked in. Chelsea have splashed more than £100m on former Manchester City graduates and the £7.5m centre-back was outshining them.
In the end, it was one of Chelsea’s own in Acheampong who equalised, taking advantage of a rare lapse in concentration in the backline to thrash home with eight minutes to go. Both teams were eager to avoid extra time, amid hectic schedules, and Neto came close to finishing the tie in normal time, assaulting the crossbar with a shot from 15 yards.
One player did not go the full distance when Dobson crudely took out Garnacho, catching him on the knee, with little intention to play the ball. Peter Bankes originally booked him but a monitor review showed the obvious, and it was upgraded. The Wrexham fans did not appreciate this introduction to VAR but the right decision was made.
Facing 10 Championship players created the inevitability of Chelsea having all the possession in extra time. Wrexham would have gladly taken penalties from kick-off, and this was the strategy.
It was an unsuccessful one, as Garnacho made the most of the extra space to volley home a Dario Essugo cross. The Argentinian went to lap up the spite he had heard all night on the advertising hoardings before being moved on by stewards, but he was certainly enjoying himself.
Brunt thought he had nudged home a very late leveller after a Moore flick on from a corner. The masses celebrated and enjoyed the magic moment, only for VAR to draw its lines of destiny.
