Wrexham boss: We were the better team and red card should have stayed yellow | OneFootball

Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson believes his side were the better team in the second half against Chelsea last night.

And despite losing the game in extra time, he is absolutely spot on. And I’d go as far as to say that they were actually the better team most of the game, especially up until they got a player sent off.

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Chelsea needed a lot of luck and then some quality in extra time when the home side tired, to get through against the Championship side.

Parkinson reacts

Phil Parkinson of Wrexham

Parkinson expressed his frustration after the final whistle, believing his side were on the verge of a historic upset before the dismissal. Speaking to BBC Sport (via Goal), he said: “In the second half I think we were the better team and I was confident we were going to win. The referee gave a yellow. I’m not sure of the rules, it’s the first time we’ve had VAR and it has to be clear and obvious to overturn it. I think the referee could have just kept it at a yellow.”

“I’m very pleased with the way we acquitted ourselves tonight,” Parkinson added. “We showed a lot of good aspects to our play and played some great football. We weren’t just coming here to stop Chelsea – we believe we can play. We were frustrated not to come in at half-time ahead. The lads have given a lot tonight and to play extra time with 10-men is really hard.”

Reflecting on the missed opportunities in the closing stages, Parkinson noted: “We wanted to have a real go in the second period and we had some great chances. We had moments even with 10 men and the lads have to take a lot of credit tonight. I said at the break in extra time there are still going to be chances for us. Unfortunately we didn’t take one but we have to take a lot of heart from that performance.”

In other news…

Liam Rosenior was reacting after the Wrexham win last night and he spoke about a player who he handed a start to for the first time in a long time, Romeo Lavia, who made a return to play in midfield in tonight’s game.

You can watch probably the most important game that Chelsea scored to bring them back into the game after Josh Acheampong levelled the scores with a smashed finish from close range.

Check out the latest edition of Simon Phillips’ SPTC podcast here: