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Watch Chelsea 5-0 Wrexham Full Highlight : Nkunku Scores First Chelsea Goal, Maatsen Double, Jackson Assists With All Action
Chelsea vs Wrexham live updates, highlights, commentary
FULL TIME: Chelsea 5-0 Wrexham
The scoreline is extremely harsh on Wrexham, who put up a quality fight against a good group of youngsters, and were undone by poor finishing of their own as well as great finishing from the opposition.
It was a wonderful scene at Kenan Stadium, where the crowd was strongly supporting Wrexham each and every time they went up the field. The League Two club has a very solid fan base here in the United States!
Chelsea vs Wrexham: Second Half
90+3 min: GOAL! CHELSEA! With literally the last kick of the match, Chelsea get a fifth! Ben Chilwell chips Rob Lainton from a tight angle to put the finishing touch on the match, and the referee blows the full-time whistle!
90th min: GOAL! CHELSEA! In his first minutes for Chelsea after joining this summer, Christopher Nkunku had hardly seen a touch of the ball all half, but he crops up here on a glorious through-ball by Cesare Casadei, and dispatches it well!
Rob Lainton came way off his line to try valiantly to snatch the ball off Nkunku, but while his touch did momentarily halt the opportunity, Nkunku got back on the ball and whipped a turn-and-fire shot into the open net. A great recovery by the new Chelsea striker after a very frustrating half!
89th min: Wrexham are pushing for a goal before the end of the match, as Ollie Palmer pushes the Blues defence on the counter, but Marc Cucurella makes an excellent tackle around the back of the Wrexham striker to end the chance.
85th min: Trevoh Chalobah comes off, replaced by…none other than Marc Cucurella! He was pulled off at halftime, but is brought back on here! How about that.
81st min: GOAL! Chelsea! Oh no, Rob Lainton won’t want to watch that one back again. Raheem Sterling dribbles across the top of the penalty area but is cut off, so he lays off to Connor Gallagher for a low dragged shot to the far post. The effort doesn’t have a lot of power, but Lainton hesitates and dives very late, and while he gets his fingertips to the ball, he can’t keep it out.
It appears Lainton couldn’t see the shot at the critical moment, and failed to react in time. A cheap third goal for Chelsea!
78th min: Chance, Wrexham! A goal mouth scramble and somehow the ball stays out! A Wrexham corner is sent in and it’s headed down by Will Boyle, forcing Lucas Bergstrom into a save just moments after entering the match. It falls right to Max Cleworth inside the six-yard box but he incredibly drags his shot wide!
The flag goes up for offside, confusingly, so it wouldn’t have counted anyways, but a great chance!
77th min: Chelsea makes a goalkeeper change for the final 15 minutes or so, with Lucas Bergstrom coming on. There are just three players on the field who started the match, all three for Chelsea — Trevoh Chalobah, Bashir Humphreys, and Cesare Casadei.
71st min: Chance, Chelsea! Straight off the Wrexham miss, Chelsea have a chance of their own! Cesare Casadei brings it up with some slick moves through the midfield again, and it’s crossed to Raheem Serling at the far post, but his leap is wild and he heads it over!
Hydration break. Attendance of 50,596 is announced. Well done, North Carolina!
70th min: Chance, Wrexham! Oh no, how did Billy Waters miss that??? It’s crossed in from the right by Ryan Barnett playing wing-back, and falls right to the feet of Waters unmarked about eight yards out, but he completely whiffs on his shot, swinging wildly and nearly missing the ball completely. He’s got to put that away!
66th min: Trevoh Chalobah produces a sensational long ball for Ben Chilwell who makes a run from his wing-back spot on the flank. It’s dropped right in a bucket for Chilwell at full speed, but he can’t bring it down at his feet, and the ball bounces harmlessly to the Wrexham goalkeeper.
61st min: Wrexham makes an entire line change on the hour mark, with six new players to come on. Most notably, Paul Mullin is withdrawn after a very lively performance, replaced by Ollie Palmer. Will Boyle was playing full-back after coming on at halftime but is restored to his natural position at centre-back.
Chelsea respond with one of their own, with Lewis Hall replacing Andrey Santos at the No. 6 spot in midfield.
59th min: The first yellow card of the match is shown to Cesare Casadei who clips the back ankle of Thomas O’Connor in midfield.
52nd min: Midfielder James Jones has a rip from deep after a Wrexham corner is cleared, but he rifles it well over the crossbar.
50th min: New Wrexham goalkeeper Rob Lainton makes a great save, sliding to clear with a Chelsea attacker free on goal, but the offside flag is up so it wouldn’t have counted anyways.
46th min: Chance, Wrexham! Straight out of the gates Wrexham have a great chance through Paul Mullin down the right flank, but he blows it at the end! He races into the six-yard box, but at too tight an angle for the shot, he tries to play a teammate at the far post there’s nobody there! His delivery was neither a promising shot or a good feed, caught between both options.
Kickoff: The second half is under way, with lots of changes for both sides, as expected. Christopher Nkunku, Raheem Sterling, Connor Gallagher and Ben Chilwell are among those on for Chelsea. Wrexham changes goalkeeper, with Ben Foster off in favour of Rob Lainton.
At halftime, fans were treated to an appearance by legendary UNC women’s soccer head coach Anson Dorrance, who has been in charge since 1979 and has won an insane 21 national championships. He also coached the U.S. women’s national team from 1986-1994.
HALF TIME: Chelsea 2-0 Wrexham
The first half comes to a close in controversial fashion, as the referee ends a very dangerous Chelsea counter-attack at midfield to blow the whistle. Mauricio Pochettino is furious, but finishes pleading his case with a hug of the official.
In truth, it’s been a pretty even match, with chances for both clubs, but the Chelsea youngsters have been far better in the final third. Ian Maatsen has finished off two quality goals, while Andrey Santos impressed in midfield and Nico Jackson has caused problems up front.
Wrexham’s most dangerous chances have come off set-pieces, most notably the long throw, but they haven’t found the finish.
Chelsea vs Wrexham: First Half
45+1 min: Wrexham are slumping to the finish line as Chelsea gain control of this match nearing halftime. Cesare Casadei has a shot from distance but puts it well over.
42nd min: GOAL! Chelsea! The Blues grab another as the Wrexham defense can’t clear the buildup! It’s created by a wonderful one-two between Carney Chukwumeka and Ian Maatsen, and the latter finishes it off for his brace
40th min: Wrexham looked opened up by Chelsea’s attack but instead it’s thwarted by some absolutely exceptional defending by Jacob Mendy who sticks with Nico Jackson and forces him out wide, preventing a shot that seemed certain to find the back of the net.
38th min: Both teams again have opportunities in the buildup but can’t get a shot off. Chelsea with a few too many unselfish passes between Carney Chukwumeka and Ian Maatsen before they’re eventually dispossessed, while another inch-perfect long through-ball for Paul Mullin nearly springs the Wrexham striker between two defenders but he can’t quite reach it.
31st min: Chance, Wrexham! The League Two minnows have a great chance, and it comes off a long throw! While the initial delivery is cleared, it’s cycled back in and Anthony Forde heads just over the crossbar! Very close to an equalizer.
Kenan Stadium is very pro-Wrexham. There are loud cheers every time they enter the attacking third and every opportunity in the penalty area, certainly louder than the ovations for Chelsea. The Premier League side is the away team here in the United States!
27th min: The game is paused for a hydration break. It’s incredibly sticky out here in North Carolina, which is nothing new for this part of the country, but is surely not what players on either club are used to. It’s 84 degrees fahrenheit with a disgusting 75% humidity.
25th min: The game has slowed somewhat, but Paul Mullin sets it alight again by running a speedy counter, busting through two defenders before being fouled by Malo Gusto. He’s been bright so far!
17th min: Elliott Lee delivers a lovely long ball up the left flank for Paul Mullin to chase, but Trevoh Chalobah comes racing across and makes a sensational tackle to end the opportunity.
It results in another long throw for Wrexham, which causes issues for the Chelsea defense in the air, but ultimately they clear. A Wrexham player got decked attacking the delivery but no call. Chelsea counter but Nico Jackson and Diego Moreira can’t connect up front and the opportunity evaporates.
14th min: Chelsea put together another killer counter-attack, started by Cesare Casadei who dribbles through no less than three Wrexham players in midfield, but it just peters out at the end with the would-be assist inches out of Diego Moreira’s reach.
12th min: Wrexham have a long spell of possession, and it nearly ends in style as Elliott Lee busts out a bicycle kick from near the top of the 18-yard-box. He puts it well wide, but it’s not a bad effort!
8th min: Wrexham pull out the long throw — you never see those anymore! — but it’s just not long enough to trouble the Chelsea back line. There’s hardly any room between the touchline and the video boards, so it’s difficult for the Wrexham full-backs to get any space to generate power on the throw.
6th min: Ben Foster comes off his line to make a save at the top of the penalty area which stops a counter-attack, but play is stopped and pulled back for a foul in midfield.
3rd min: GOAL! Chelsea! Well, as stated just a minute ago, Wrexham were pressing Chelsea extremely high, and while they were causing the Blues some issues at the back, it comes back to haunt them. Wrexham lose the ball at the halfway line and it starts a vicious Chelsea break, run by striker Nicolas Jackson and finished off by Ian Maatsen.
Maatsen is 21 years old, a Dutch youth international who joined Chelsea in 2018 after spending time in the youth systems of Feyenoord, Sparta Rotterdam, and PSV. He has the Blues already in front
2nd min: Wrexham is pressing Chelsea very high, love to see it! This is a big occasion for them playing a top European club, even if it is a preseason friendly.
Kickoff: We’re under way from Kenan Stadium on the campus of UNC! Sporting News is live on site as these two teams gear up for the coming campaign, and fans in the United States can enjoy watching their favorite English clubs!
Highlights: Chelsea 5-0 Wrexham
Italian midfielder Casadei and English center-back Bashir Humphreys were the only two players who
After missing the season due to a knee injury, Christopher Nkunku is almost ready to make his Chelsea debut. However, Mauricio Pochettino must decide where the £52 million summer acquisition will fit into an improving team. Nkunku is expected to resume full training soon and may make his debut on Saturday against Newcastle.
His absence caused Chelsea to struggle mightily during the early part of the season, as the Frenchman scored three goals in four games during the preseason tour of the United States, around which Pochettino had built his attack.
Nkunku has returned to an improving Chelsea after eight goals in two games against Tottenham and Manchester City, but he has the ability to step up this onslaught even more.
The easiest method for Nkunku to join the club is to replace Nicolas Jackson as the centre striker.
Jackson’s hat-trick against Tottenham brought his season total of goals scored in 14 games to a respectable seven.
However, he has been uneasy in games vs weaker teams and found it difficult to be the centre of attention when the opposition lined up in a low block.
An entertaining eight-goal thriller at Stamford Bridge comes to an end with both Man City and Chelsea sharing the points after a 4-4 draw.
The game took a while to catch fire, Haaland putting City ahead in the 25th minute from the spot after being hauled down by Cucurella,
Buut Chelsea responded, levelling through Thiago Silva’s header before Sterling scored against his former team to make it 2-1 to the hosts.
Back came City, though, as an unmarked Akanji restored parity with a header in first-half added time before Haaland bundled home his second of the game to put the champions 3-2 up.
Chelsea would again answer through Jackson to make it three goals apiece, but Rodri appeared to net the winner with four minutes left, firing home via a huge deflection off Thiago Silva to put City on the verge of victory.
There would be one final twist, however, as Broja came off the bench to win a penalty after being brought down by Dias before Palmer, against the club whose academy he grew up in, stepped up to fire home from the spot and earn Chelsea a point.
The result moves Chelsea up into the top half, and they will look to continue their upturn in form away at injury-hit Newcastle United next Saturday.
City miss the chance to extend their lead at the summit to three points, and they have a huge home game with Liverpool to look forward to next weekend.
Below is the final EPL Table after Today’s Matches;
In a fascinating English Premier League game on Sunday evening, Chelsea secured a hard-fought 4-4 draw against Manchester City, thanks to a stoppage-time penalty from former City player Cole Palmer.
Chelsea’s positive start was momentarily halted when Marc Cucurella fouled Erling Haaland, who confidently converted the subsequent penalty for his 12th Premier League goal of the season. Undeterred, the Londoners struck back with Thiago Silva’s header and Raheem Sterling’s goal against his former club.
The second half continued the intense action, with Haaland scoring early on. Despite key saves from Robert Sánchez, Nicolas Jackson extended Chelsea’s lead. Rodri’s goal seemed to secure the win for Manchester City, but Rúben Dias’s late foul on Armando Broja led to a dramatic stoppage-time penalty, expertly converted by Palmer.
Chelsea’s resilience maintained their positive form under Mauricio Pochettino, having lost only one of their last eight games across all competitions.
Meanwhile, Manchester City remains unbeaten in six competitive fixtures and sits atop the Premier League table.
Check out the latest Premier League Table below:
Michael Carrick singles out one Chelsea player following the 6-1 defeat, but the national media disagrees
Victor Osimhen breaks silence on his future amid Chelsea and Arsenal striker transfer hunt
Chelsea’s next five fixtures compared to Man United, Tottenham and Aston Villa in top four race
Confirmed Chelsea line up vs Newcastle : Palmer, Jackson, Sterling Start as Nkunku seat on the bench
