The Chelsea squad found themselves facing a strenuous task.
Chelsea twice rallied from a deficit against Championship team Wrexham, narrowly avoiding a significant FA Cup upset to advance to the quarter-finals with a 4-2 win at The Racecourse Ground.
Liam Rosenior had made nine alterations from the lineup that secured an impressive 4-1 Premier League triumph at Aston Villa on Wednesday, and for extended periods, it seemed that choice would backfire.
Sam Smith put Wrexham ahead in the 18th minute, and it wasn’t until an unfortunate own goal from Arthur Okonkwo 22 minutes later that Chelsea managed to equalize.
Callum Doyle appeared to place Wrexham on the brink of the quarter-finals when they reclaimed their advantage 12 minutes before the conclusion of regulation time, only for Josh Acheampong to respond almost immediately at the opposite end.
The match swung heavily in Chelsea’s favour during stoppage time when George Dobson was dismissed for a foul on Alejandro Garnacho, who then propelled Chelsea into the lead in extra time as their numerical superiority made a difference.
Wrexham seemed poised to force a penalty shootout when Lewis Brunt netted at the far post with six minutes remaining in extra time, only for his close-range effort to be disallowed for offside.
Joao Pedro added an almost undeserved embellishment in the final moments, definitively concluding a game where Wrexham demonstrated why they nurture ambitions of promotion to the Premier League this campaign.
Wrexham pushed Chelsea extremely close
Smith ignited euphoria at the Racecourse Ground when he seized upon Doyle’s lengthy pass, winning a footrace against Tosin Adarabioyo before slotting past the returning Robert Sanchez, who was once more culpable for a goal as he was caught out of position and unable to reach a shot that lacked significant power.
Sanchez needed to display remarkable reflexes to tip a deflected attempt from Ryan Longman over the crossbar, and Wrexham’s inability to double their lead was penalized under highly unfortunate circumstances.
Liam Delap performed admirably, surging through the midfield and laying the ball off for Garnacho, whose shot was cleared off the goal line, only for the ball to rebound off the back of Okonkwo and into the net.
Wrexham maintained parity until the interval, but Chelsea exhibited improvement in the initial phases of the second half, with Garnacho dragging his shot wide before Jorrel Hato fired across the goalmouth and narrowly past the far post.
Despite an uplift in Chelsea’s performance, Wrexham appeared within grasp of a stunning upset after Doyle’s instinctive flick diverted Josh Windass’ powerful strike beyond Sanchez.
Chelsea, however, promptly restored equilibrium for a second time, with Acheampong lashing the ball home at the near post subsequent to excellent play from Andrey Santos.
Wrexham remained undeterred, and Sanchez was scrambling after he parried George Thomason’s shot only as far as Windass, whose subsequent header sailed marginally wide.
Pedro Neto rattled the crossbar at the other end after being set up by the in-form substitute Pedro, with the Blues’ aspirations then considerably boosted after referee Peter Bankes upgraded the initial yellow card issued to Dobson for his reckless tackle on Garnacho to a red following a pitchside VAR review.
Wrexham endured the remainder of stoppage time, but they could only hold out for five minutes of extra time, with Garnacho’s first-time finish from Dario Essugo’s superb ball to the far post granting Chelsea control.
The home supporters erupted after Brunt bundled home from Kieffer Moore’s flick-on, but they were soon expressing their displeasure when VAR ruled he had strayed marginally offside.
Pedro’s solo effort sealed the contest, yet this was met with the standing ovation Wrexham merited as they exited the competition with immense distinction to their name.