Three Nigeria-eligible players were in action for their clubs at the Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California earlier this morning, Soccernet.ng reports.
Tyrique George, Arthur Okonkwo and Lesley Ugochukwu were involved as Chelsea played a 2-2 draw against AFC Wrexham in their pre-season friendly.
Chelsea’s new head coach, Enzo Maresca, featured his new signings like Marc Guiu and Tosin Adarabioyo. For Wrexham, Okonkwo started the game and was withdrawn on the hour mark.
The game got off to a feisty start, as Chelsea’s Levi Colwill clashed with Wrexham’s James McClean inside two minutes. However, the situation de-escalated quickly when their teammates and the referee got involved.
Chelsea vs Wrexham fight after two minutes match start 😭 levi colwill. pic.twitter.com/IKNhZko0YF
— Aspire™ (@AspireTm) July 25, 2024
Christopher Nkunku broke the deadlock in the 35th minute. Nigeria-eligible youngster, Tyrique George sent a shot in from the edge of Wrexham’s box, but his shot cannoned off Marc Guiu, falling kindly to Nkunku who wasted no time in sweeping home.
The National League one side equalized on the hour mark via Luke Bolton. A low cross from Sebastian Revan was missed by the entire Chelsea backline, leaving the English man free at the far post, as he tapped the ball into Lucas Bergström’s goal.
Phil Parkinson’s team took the lead in the 71st minute through Jack Marriot after a brilliant ball recovery from Sam Dalby who then played an-inch perfect into Marriot’s path. The 29-year-old put his left boot through the ball, sending it into the bottom corner.
Lesley Ugochukwu came off the bench to rescue a draw for Maresca’s team in the 82nd minute following a series of intricate passes in Wrexham’s boss.
Our first match of pre-season ends all square. ⏹️@FICO_corp | #BluesInTheUSA pic.twitter.com/YYgujYKDo9
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 25, 2024
The draw thrilled Wrexham’s coach, as he was delighted his team could go toe-to-toe with an English Premier League.
“You have to put it into context, they spent so much money on that team and we were in the National League two years ago and we went toe-to-toe and could have won the game,” Parkinson said post-match in quotes revealed by The Mirror.
Ugochukwu was selected by Thierry Henry as a part of France’s Olympic men’s team but was withdrawn from the squad by Chelsea for their pre-season preparations.
Adefolahan Guerreiro
Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria.
With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience.
He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.
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