Overview
Wrexham will have the opportunity to prove their strength when facing Chelsea in the 5th round of the FA Cup. Backed by two famous owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, Wrexham has had an impressive journey of promotion with three consecutive promotions in three seasons, from National League to Championship. Currently, the Welsh team is holding the last position in the promotion play-off group when the season has 11 rounds left.
In the FA Cup, Wrexham made a splash when they eliminated Nottingham Forest in the third round. After a dramatic 3-3 draw at SToK Cae Ras stadium, this team won 4-3 in the penalty shootout to advance.
Now, they are participating in the 5th round of the FA Cup for the first time since the 1996-1997 season and must face a huge challenge named Chelsea.
Wrexham entered the match with stable form when unbeaten in 5 consecutive matches. This series of matches started with a 1-0 victory over Ipswich Town in the fourth round of the FA Cup and most recently a 1-0 victory over Charlton Athletic.
Although the opponent is superior in financial potential, coach Phil Parkinson affirmed that his players will enter the match with a comfortable mentality.
We will put all our strength into bringing the best performance. We respect Chelsea, they have a very strong squad and have spent a lot of money over the years. But we have nothing to lose. The team will take the field with a fighting spirit and see what happens" - Parkinson shared.
However, Wrexham's chances of creating a surprise may become more difficult when Chelsea just had an impressive 4-1 victory over Aston Villa in the middle of the week. That was the right time for The Blues to return after a series of unstable results, when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Burnley and lost to Arsenal 1-2 in the Premier League.
Wesley Fofana and Pedro Neto received red cards in those matches, but both are still eligible to play in the FA Cup. Pedro Neto is in very high form in this tournament when scoring 4 goals after 2 matches, including a hat-trick in the 4-0 victory over Hull City in the fourth round.
The Portuguese international has the opportunity to become the first Chelsea player since Pedro in the 2016-2017 season to score in the third, fourth and fifth rounds of the FA Cup in the same season.
Neto is likely to continue to start in attack, in the context that Estevao and Jamie Gittens are absent due to hamstring injuries, and Marc Cucurella is also uncertain to return in time.
On Wrexham's side, Ben Sheaf will be out for the rest of the season after suffering a knee ligament injury. In addition, Matty James and Liberato Cacace are also having problems with their toes and hamstrings.
Head-to-head record
It has been more than four decades since the last time Wrexham and Chelsea faced each other in an official match. The most recent confrontation took place in February 1982 in the English Second Division, when Wrexham won a minimal 1-0 victory over the London team.
That is also just one of Wrexham's two rare victories against Chelsea. In a total of nine previous encounters in all competitions, The Blues have won 4 matches.
One of those victories took place in the FA Cup season 1981-1982, when Chelsea eliminated Wrexham in the 4th round. However, the London team needed 2 rematches to qualify for the next round.
Chelsea also had a positive experience when playing away in Wales this season. In the Carabao Cup, they defeated Cardiff City 3-1 right away before stopping in the semi-finals after losing to Arsenal.
Score prediction: Wrexham 0-3 Chelsea
The match between Wrexham and Chelsea takes place at 0:45 am on March 8 (Vietnam time).
