ENGLISH FA CUP BETTING PREVIEW - WREXHAM VS CHELSEA

English FA CUP

2026-03-07 - Wrexham vs Chelsea

A Sports Betting Preview by Auls

Wrexham v Chelsea
Football: English FA Cup Fifth Round
Saturday 7th March 2026 - Kick Off 5:45pm
This game is live on TV

---

Wrexham

Being purchased by a couple of big name actors meant an increased interest in Wrexham both domestically and across the pond in North America, but the achievements on the pitch cannot be ignored. The club have moved through the levels efficiently, but even the most ardent Wrexham fan has to be pinching themselves by seeing the team sitting in the top six in the Championship.

Most would have expected this season to be one of consolidating considering how quickly Wrexham have put the promotions together, but there are big ambitions in the boardroom. They have already upset one Premier League club at the Racecourse Ground when seeing off Nottingham Forest on Penalties in the Third Round, but this feels like the biggest fixture Wrexham will have played since the takeover that has increased their profile.

Wrexham have built up some really strong momentum with a single loss in the last 9 games played in all competitions and they have won 4 of the last 5 since that defeat. It was a loss suffered at home at the hands of Millwall, but The Red Dragons have won 3 in a row at the Racecourse Ground ahead of this huge fixture.

Chelsea

Conceding in the opening three minutes in a huge Premier League game at Villa Park did not knock Chelsea out of their stride and they were comfortable 1-4 winners on Wednesday night when all was said and done. Liam Rosenior has yet to convince all of the doubters, but the players seemingly believe in what he is asking of them and Chelsea will feel they can achieve all of their ambitions over the coming months.

Silverware will always be important to Chelsea fans and Rosenior is in charge of a set of players that won the Conference League and Club World Cup, although supporters will understand there are bigger challenges in trying to do the same in the Champions League. A top five finish in the Premier League is also very important for the club, but the manager has overseen wins at Charlton Athletic and Hull City in the FA Cup and will be desperate for Chelsea to avoid the upset.

Chelsea had only won 1 of the previous 4 games in all competitions before the thumping success at Aston Villa during the week. That victory has maintained strong away performances under Liam Rosenior with Chelsea winning 6 of the 8 games played on their travels under the current manager.

A big Champions League tie is coming up and Chelsea have been moving through a busy schedule, which means players will be rested and rotated. There is a feeling that Reece James, Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro will not be asked to start on Saturday afternoon, but Pedro Neto is back from a suspension and there is strong depth available to the manager.

Head to Head

These two clubs have not faced one another since the 1981/82 season when both Wrexham and Chelsea played in the second tier of English Football.

The two League games were won by the home team, but Chelsea did eventually come through a FA Cup Second Replay at the Racecourse Ground.

Prediction

As soon as the draw was made for the FA Cup Fifth Round, this looked the standout tie as far as story-making headlines are concerned.

Two Hollywood actors have helped increase the profile of Wrexham Football Club, but Phil Parkinson and the squad deserve a lot of credit for actually producing the goods on the pitch.

They have to be favourites to earn one of the four Play Off spots available in the Championship and Wrexham may just surprise everyone again by earning a promotion to the Premier League.

On Saturday, they get another taste of the big time having already beaten Nottingham Forest here in the FA Cup Third Round. This is expected to be a tougher game against a Chelsea team that have won away Cup ties at Charlton Athletic and Hull City under Liam Rosenior and even the changes made to the starting eleven have not impacted what The Blues have been able to put together on the field.

It still feels that Chelsea's depth will give them the edge, but nothing is going to come easy at the Racecourse Ground where Wrexham have won 3 in a row.

The home team have nothing to lose and should cause problems for Chelsea's defence, but containing the Premier League threat is going to be a huge challenge.

As long as Liam Rosenior plays the likes of Alejandro Garnacho, Pedro Neto and Liam Delap, there is a feeling they have the quality in the final third to hurt the hosts.

Goals should be expected, but Chelsea may still come out on the right side having scored nine goals in away ties at Championship opponents in the last two Rounds.

The Pick :

Wrexham 1-3 Chelsea

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back Chelsea to Win & Over 2 Goals (Bet Builder) at 1.83 with Bet365 (early payout if a team is leading by two goals)