Chelsea’s Alejandro Garnacho and Joao Pedro struck in extra time to secure a nail-biting 4-2 win over second division Wrexham on Saturday and a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals as the Premier League giants escaped from the Racecourse Ground after a tough battle.
Garnacho struck from close range in the 97th minute with such force that the ball deflected off the back of the ball to give Chelsea the lead for the first time that evening.
Wrexham – who lost George Dobson to a red card in the 93rd minute – thought they had equalized deep into added time when Lewis Brunt headed home but was offside.
“It’s actually such a shame that our first foray into VAR has gone this way,” Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson told i dfsd.
Joao Pedro sealed Chelsea’s hard-fought victory with a close-range shot in the 125th minute.
Sam Smith had given the Championship side the lead in the 18th when he sprinted onto Callum Doyle’s long pass, took a touch and fired past Robert Sanchez. Chelsea were lucky to equalize when George Thomason’s attempt to clear Garnacho’s shot hit goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo and curled in.
READ ALSO | Lionel Messi scores 899th goal as Inter Miami beats DC United
Wrexham took the lead again on 78 minutes when Doyle guided the ball past Sanchez after Ryan Longman had fired the ball back into the area from a corner. But Josh Acheampong equalized shortly afterwards with a blistering shot into the roof of the net after Dobson slipped, sending the match into extra time.
Eight-time FA Cup winners Chelsea, who sit fifth in the standings, entered the Premier League after a 4-1 thrashing of Aston Villa on Wednesday, with Blues boss Liam Rosenior making nine changes to that team for Saturday’s match.
“We’re ready,” Rosenior said TNT.
«Not the best performance; a really tough game, which we knew it would be. Wrexham were excellent. This was a real FA Cup game, the reason why everyone loves the FA Cup. I’m just glad we got through in the end,» he added.
Wrexham were keen to add another glittering milestone to their remarkable rise since Hollywood A-listers Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds bought the North Wales team in 2021.
After three promotions in a row, the Red Dragons now sit among the play-off spots in sixth place in the Championship as they look to reach the top flight. They also dispatched Premier League club Nottingham Forest on penalties in the third round.
But it was not to be on Saturday and the smiling duo of McElhenney and Reynolds gave their players a well-deserved round of applause after a match in which Wrexham narrowly missed numerous chances, including a shot that Lewis O’Brien deflected just wide of the post late on.
Published on March 8, 2026
