Championship side Wrexham host Chelsea in the fifth round of the FA Cup today, with both clubs looking to book a place in the last eight as they face off at the Racecourse Ground.
The Welsh side, who have found recent success after the involvement of Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, are looking for the biggest result since the takeover as they welcome the Blues, and are hoping to make the quarter-finals for just the third time in their history.
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Meanwhile, Liam Rosenior’s side are hoping to make the last eight for the fifth time in seven seasons. While the Blues haven’t won the competition since 2018, they’ve been runners-up in three of the last six seasons.
But while Chelsea will likely regard the FA Cup as their best chance at a trophy this term, they won’t disregard the threat posed by Wrexham as the Championship outfit look to make more history.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the game.
When is Wrexham vs Chelsea?
The match is scheduled to kick off at 5.45pm on Saturday, 7 March at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham, Wales.
How can I watch it?
Viewers can watch the match live in the UK on both TNT Sports 1 and BBC One, with coverage starting at 5pm on TNT and 5:30pm on the BBC. Subscribers can also stream the action on discovery+, or watch for free on BBC iPlayer. In the US, the FA Cup can be viewed on ESPN.
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Team news
The hosts could be missing a key trio in the form of George Dobson, Issy Kabore and Nathan Broadhead, who are all doubts. Dobson required surgery on his wrist, while Broadhead took a knock last time out and Kabore has supposed tightness in his hamstring.
Ben Sheaf, Liberato Cacace and Matty James are also doubts, while Lewis Brunt and Aaron James are both sidelined.
For Chelsea, Romeo Lavia will feature but this match will likely come too soon for Dario Essugo and Estevao and Jamie Gittens is also sidelined until later this month. The main decisions for Rosenior will concern who to start, considering the club have a Champions League tie against PSG coming up, as well as who to pick in goal, after dropping Robert Sanchez for the win at Aston Villa.
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Predicted line-ups
Wrexham XI: Okonwo; Cleworth, Hyam, Doyle; Kabore, Dobson, O’Brien, Thomason; Broadhead, Rathbone; Moore.
Chelsea XI: Jorgensen; Gusto, Tosin, Sarr, Hato; Santos, Lavia; Palmer, Fernandez, Garnacho; Delap.
Latest FA Cup winner odds
Phil Parkinson’s Wrexham are pushing the reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup for the first time since 1997 but Chelsea stand in their way of a last-eight berth and harbour their own ambitions of lifting the FA Cup for a ninth time, and a first since 2018. But, they are only the fourth favourites to go the distance in the competition.
Arsenal – 3/1
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Man City – 4/1
Liverpool – 11/2
Chelsea – 11/2
Newcastle – 12/1
Leeds – 14/1
Brentford – 16/1
Fulham – 20/1
Sunderland – 22/1
West Ham – 33/1
Wolves – 66/1
Southampton – 66/1
Wrexham – 100/1
Norwich – 100/1
Mansfield – 500/1
Port Vale – 500/1
Odds provided by Betway.
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