Chelsea 2 - 2 Wrexham draw: Maresca defends style of play

In Santa Clara, California, midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu equalized in the 82nd minute, erasing two goals the League One team had scored in the second half.

In the 35th minute of Chelsea's first friendly during their preseason tour of the United States, Christopher Nkunku scored with a crisp finish in the penalty box.

However, Wrexham surprised everyone by taking the lead after both sides made significant changes at halftime, with goals coming from Luke Bolton and Jack Marriott.

Chelsea struggled in the second half as they adjusted to Maresca's possession-based style, which included defensive blunders.

With a half-empty Levi's Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers, on Saturday, Wrexham impressed, adding to their 1-1 draw against Bournemouth. 

Maresca was questioned for his theory of play, which advocated for more gradual build-up from the back to the front, and goal conceding.

With luck, not too many. It is a risk that comes with attempting to construct anything from the back."

The 44-year-old former Leicester manager also declared that he will "absolutely" keep up his approach, saying, "I have no doubt." You have to determine which method you need to give up a goal since, in my opinion, you will concede in numerous ways.

"Teams that try to build from the back sometimes give goals away, but I believe you will score more goals than you give up."

Chelsea led 1-0 at halftime thanks to a curling free-kick from Reece James that struck the crossbar and several dangerous corners.

However, Ugochukwu was unable to stop Seb Revan's cross in the second half, and Bolton finished it in at the far post.

Thanks to a mistake by Josh Acheampong, Marriott scored a stunning low drive to give Wrexham a startling lead. Marriott then had another attempt brilliantly stopped by Lucas Bergstrom, Chelsea's goalie, in the second half. 

Substitutes Angelo Gabriel, Armando Broja, and Ugochukwu worked together skillfully to equalize the score with a nice left-foot strike by Ugochukwu, who made up for his earlier error.