Declan Rice receives rousing reception in Arsenal's 5-0 win against MLS All Stars; Chelsea hammer Wrexham

Washington: If this was the reception for Declan Rice in the US capital, imagine this season in London. Arsenal’s new midfield star came on as a second-half substitute and helped finish off a 5-0 victory over the MLS All-Stars on Wednesday night. Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard, Jorginho, Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz all scored — but those weren’t the only highlights for the many red-clad Arsenal supporters in the crowd at Audi Field. Rice moved from West Ham to the Gunners for a British-record transfer fee last weekend, reported to be £105 million pounds ($138 million). The crowd roared when he came in just over an hour into the match, and cheered again when he possessed the ball. US national team forward Folarin Balogun, whose days at Arsenal could be numbered, also came on for the London club at the same time as Rice. By then, the Gunners had a 3-0 lead. “I think we were suffocated with the weather… and we could not really control the game,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said. “But it’s true that we were exceptional in both boxes today. Every time we got in the final third in good position, we put the ball in the back of the net.” The MLS has defeated the likes of Chelsea and Bayern Munich in the past in this format, which generally results in competitive games with more defending than some other All-Star events. The MLS team — which did not include recent Miami addition Lionel Messi — received four yellow cards before halftime. “I thought the referee made the game a little bit about himself once again,” said former Manchester United star and current DC United coach Wayne Rooney, who led the MLS team. “I think that’s something that needs improving in the MLS. I’ve said it all season, so it’s a good opportunity for me to bring it up again.” Jesus opened the scoring with a beautiful chip in the fifth minute. His shot from outside the penalty area sailed past goalkeeper Roman Burki of St Louis and bounced in off the left post. Trossard doubled the lead in the 23rd with another goal from outside the penalty area, a bit more toward the middle — and struck harder — than Jesus’ shot. Trossard was shaken up early in the second half and was replaced by a substitute. In the first minute after halftime, St. Louis defender Tim Parker was called for a handball in the penalty area, and Jorginho made it 3-0. Martinelli and Havertz scored late to make it a five-goal margin. “Arsenal showed the quality which they have,” Rooney said. “I thought the All-Star lads, a little bit nervous and hesitant, especially first half when we got into some good areas.” Havertz is another newcomer to Arsenal, having been signed away from Chelsea. “He gives you something very different, with quality, with his size as well, when you have to beat the press for example, and use him as an attacking man” Arteta said. “I’m sure throughout the season and throughout games as well, we are going to have the option to use him in different positions.” US defender Auston Trusty was in the game at the end for Arsenal along with Balogun. “I think they deserved to enjoy that moment and get that recognition and play in front of their crowds," Arteta said. Preparing for its Premier League opener against Nottingham Forest on 12 August, Arsenal plays friendlies against Manchester United on Saturday at East Rutherford, New Jersey, and vs Barcelona on 26 July at Inglewood, California. Wrexham opens US tour with 5-0 loss to Chelsea Chapel Hill, North Carolina: Sue Martin had the summer mapped out for her family from St Augustine, Florida. Then along came word that Chelsea and Wrexham would play a preseason friendly on US soil. “We had a whole vacation planned and they dropped this game,” Martin said before . “We needed to be here. We love soccer. We love Ryan Reynolds.” Reynolds and co-owner Rob McElhenney have taken Wrexham from a struggling fifth-tier side to a fan favourite, largely through the globally-streamed docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham.” The Red Dragons opened a four-game preseason US tour Wednesday night with a 5-0 loss to Chelsea, which got two goals from Ian Maatsen and one each from Conor Gallagher, Christopher Nkunku and Ben Chilwell. The game drew 50,596 to Kenan Memorial Stadium. The match was a must-see event and the first of its kind in this college town. Chelsea, coming off a miserable 13th-place finish in the Premier League, was the 2021 European champion, Wrexham, the oldest club from Wales, earned promotion to English football’s fourth tier. Both teams soaked in the atmosphere. “It was amazing,” Mauricio Pochettino said after his first friendly as Chelsea manager. “It was full. We really enjoyed the game.” There were even perks for the Red Dragons. “It has been incredible with a great few days,” Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson said. “It was a really enjoyable night. You want to keep the score down in terms of the performance.” Brian and Jenny Roper and their 11-year-old son Logan from St Petersburg, Florida, saw Chelsea play last year in Orlando. They didn’t flinch at making a longer trek. As a bonus, this one included Wrexham. “(Logan) plays a lot of soccer,” Brian Roper said. “I want to show him what real soccer looks like. There’s the novelty of them playing Wrexham. My wife would even enjoy this because she knows Wrexham.” Martin’s family of four sported gear supporting both Chelsea and Wrexham. Pregame festivities on the humid night were spread around campus. Matseen scored in the third and 42nd minutes, the second goal on a shot from the top of penalty area. Gallagher added a goal in the 80th, Nkunku in the 90th and Chilwell in the third minute of stoppage time. [caption id=“attachment_12892682” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Chelsea’s Ian Maatsen celebrates with teammates after scoring in the pre-season friendly against Wrexham FC in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. AP[/caption] Wrexham, which opened the preseason last weekend with a 4-2 win over Wales’ Bala Town, plays at LA Galaxy II on Saturday, against the Manchester United youth academy on 25 July at San Diego, against Philadelphia Union II on 29 July. Wrexham opens the League 2 season at home against the MK Dons on 5 August. Chelsea faces Brighton on Saturday at Philadelphia, Newcastle on 26 July in Atlanta, Fulham on 30 July at Landover, Maryland, and Borussia Dortmund on 2 August at Chicago. The Blues open the Premier League at home against Liverpool on 13 August. “It has been fantastic,” North Carolina athletics director Bubba Cunningham said. “It’s a great event. We all get excited about unique, fun events and this is one of them.” The locals were checking it out as well. Nathan Gardner, a teacher from nearby Efland, brought his 16-year-old son Carson to take in the scene. The elder Gardner said he became familiar with Wrexham through the streaming show. “When it was announced, I saw it and said, ‘They’re coming here?’” Gardner said. “I was pretty shocked, but I want to see it.” North Carolina men’s basketball coach Hubert Davis and family walked into the stadium without much fanfare about 40 minutes prior to the scheduled start. This is the same venue where in less than two months Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye will try to bolster his Heisman Trophy candidacy. More than 1.5 million pounds of sod was installed last week to cover the stadium’s artificial turf surface. Hedges that circled the stadium’s field were removed in 2019. “We couldn’t do it until the hedges came out,” Cunningham said of the stadium set-up. “One thing we all talk about in college athletics is it brings community. This is one that is a community event. It’s a nice economic impact. And when I looked at the other cities that are hosting this, we’re barely a neighborhood compared to some of those cities.” From a global perspective, the past few days marked a huge chance to embellish the brands. “It’s important to spread the word that it’s a great game,” Parkinson said. “The amount of people with Wrexham shirts and Wrexham caps has blown us all away.”