Wrexham had a dramatic goal denied by VAR in extra time, with Alejandro Garnacho and João Pedro sealing an unconvincing 4-2 win and sealing Chelsea’s place in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
In the 114th minute of the night, Louis Brandt headed home Kiefer Moore’s flick from a corner kick to make it 3-3, but the historic celebration was cut short by replays for offside.
At the end of stoppage time in the second half of extra time, Garnacho put the Premier League giants ahead for the first time in the 96th minute, and substitute Joao Pedro rushed forward to score the fourth goal, ensuring Chelsea’s advancement to the next round despite a lackluster performance.
Liam Rosenior’s side made nine changes and looked disjointed throughout, but were forced to come back twice to defeat their Championship opponents in a game where cup magic and the threat of a Hollywood script-style ending loomed throughout.
Sam Smith sparked those dreams with a stunning opening goal, but the excitement was quickly dashed when Chelsea equalized with Arthur Okonkwo’s shot from a clearance from George Thomasson, who denied Gaankaho after swiping the ball past Robert Sanchez.
Sam Smith drives to celebrate after beating Robert Sanchez to give Wrexham a first-half lead against Chelsea
The hosts’ energetic performance continued and Wrexham capitalized on the momentum by regaining the lead with Callum Doyle’s goal with 12 minutes remaining.
Teeing up Smith for the opener, the defender’s superb flick deflected Josh Windass’ shot and sparked wild celebrations. But Chelsea found a different response through unlikely candidate Josh Achiampong, who danced his way into the box and scored another equalizer at his near post four minutes later.
A red card for George Dobson in the 93rd minute reduced Wrexham to 10 men, leading to an eventful first encounter with VAR, but it was only when the decision was reviewed and the initial yellow card upgraded that the game was taken out of their hands.
Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson told TNT Sports: “I thought VAR was there to make a clear and unequivocal call. Dobo came in with force. The referee is in a good position to see it. He scraped his shin.”
“He was caught low. I think he could have easily left it with a yellow. In my opinion, VAR should not have intervened.”
“It was a tough decision, and if that’s the case, you should leave it to the on-field decision.”
While upset by the decision and its aftermath, Wrexham can be proud of their performance.
Co-owners Rob Mack and Ryan Reynolds applauded their team at the final whistle and left the game reflecting on what happened on a night that threatened to have a fairytale ending.
Rosenior: It wasn’t the best performance
Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior told TNT Sport:
“It’s over. It wasn’t the best performance. It was a really, really difficult match.
“You have to give the players a chance, you have to look at the team and manage the team.
“This team has played more games in the last 18 months than any other club in world football. It’s insane to just keep going and risk injuries to players when we want to achieve what we want to achieve.”
“Some elements of our play were very good. We were able to advance to the next round.”
Manager Phil Parkinson criticizes VAR after Wrexham’s 4-2 loss to Chelsea
Mr. Parkinson: There’s a lot to be happy about.
Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson told TNT Sport:
“There were a lot of things that we were happy with in our play, not just the pressing, the discipline, but also some of the football that we played. We thought we were going to pose a threat tonight, and we delivered.”
“We didn’t come here tonight just to stop Chelsea. VAR is going to be a hot topic, so it’s very disappointing that our first VAR experience turned out like this.”
