Chelsea claim 4-2 extra-time win over Wrexham to reach FA Cup quarter-finals

WREXHAM, Wales, March 7 : Chelsea's Alejandro Garnacho and Joao Pedro struck in extra time to secure a nervy 4–2 win over second‑tier Wrexham and a place in the FA Cup quarter‑finals on Saturday as the Premier League giants escaped from the Racecourse Ground after a tough battle.

Garnacho volleyed home from close range in the 97th minute with such force that the ball ricocheted off the back stanchion to give Chelsea the lead for the first time on the night.

Wrexham - who lost George Dobson to a 93rd-minute red card - thought they had equalised deep into added time in the extra period when Lewis Brunt headed home but he was offside.

"It's such a shame, really, that our first taste of VAR has gone this way," Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson told TNT Sports.

Joao Pedro sealed Chelsea's hard-fought win with a close-range shot in the 125th minute.

Sam Smith had put the Championship side ahead in the 18th when he sprinted onto Callum Doyle's long pass, took a touch and fired past Robert Sanchez. Chelsea equalised with a huge slice of luck when George Thomason's attempt to clear Garnacho's shot struck goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo and rolled in.

Wrexham went back in front after 78 minutes when Doyle diverted the ball past Sanchez after Ryan Longman fired it back into the area from a corner. But Josh Acheampong equalised soon after with a blistering shot into the roof of the net after Dobson slipped, sending the game into extra time.

Eight-times FA Cup winners Chelsea, who are fifth in the standings, were coming off a 4-1 thrashing of Aston Villa in the Premier League on Wednesday, and Blues boss Liam Rosenior made nine changes to that team for Saturday's match.

"We're through," Rosenior told TNT. "Not the best performance; really, really