Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson hailed his side’s “immense character” after coming from behind three times with only 10 men to claim a dramatic 3-3 draw against Crewe.
Crewe took the lead through Mickey Demetriou and received a further boost when Wrexham midfielder Ryan Barnett was sent off in the 36th minute following a late challenge on Shilow Tracey.
Paul Mullin levelled soon after with an overhead kick but Chris Long’s penalty gave Crewe the half-time edge at the Racecourse.
Another impressive Mullin equaliser made it 2-2 soon after the restart but Tracey restored Crewe’s lead and that looked set to earn Alex the points until Wrexham substitute Steven Fletcher headed in a stoppage-time equaliser
Parkinson felt Barnett should not have been sent off, saying they appeal the red card, and also praised Mullin’s performance on the back of a family bereavement as the prolific frontman scored his first goals of the new season.
“There was immense character from the lads,” said Parkinson.
“In the second half I thought we were the better team and had some great chances. If we had not got the draw it would have been an injustice and I’m actually disappointed we didn’t win it given we had 10 men.
“It was an exciting game with lots of talking points. Even if we hadn’t got that goal I would still have been proud of the way the lads played today.
“It has been a tough week with a family bereavement so I’m pleased for him (Mullin). He was firing on all cylinders and with the two goals I don’t think there are many players who would produce moments like that at this level.
“The sending off was a very poor decision. It was never a sending off. It was the fourth official who gave it. It was a low challenge that wasn’t endangering the player. We will appeal that straight away.”
Though disappointed at not seeing out the win, Crewe boss Lee Bell believes few sides will replicate the Railwaymen’s impressive first-half showing against the Dragons.
He said: “I thought it was two good teams having a go at each other. I thought we were outstanding first half, to come here and play in that manner, I thought we were outstanding.
“The killer really is the goal they scored straight after half-time, that’s the hard one. It makes the crowd go up.
“We’re a young team and it’s new experiences for them in terms of being the better team more often than not now throughout games, and now we’ve just got to show that little bit of belief when we take the lead in games like this to really kill it off.
“With the negative that there was in the game in terms of the goals we conceded, there were so many positives.
“To come here, particularly the first half with 11 players, I thought we were outstanding because there won’t be many teams that come here and are able to perform like that.”
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Arsenal handed another injury blow as White ruled out for 'months'
Mikel Arteta confirmed that Arsenal defender Ben White is facing "months" on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury.
White had been dealing with several issues all season and has missed five games in all competitions for the Gunners already this term.
After struggling through until the November international break, the decision was taken for him to undergo surgery in order to finally address the ongoing problems.
It serves as a bitter blow for Arteta, with only Thomas Parety (13) making more interceptions than White (11) for Arsenal in the Premier League this campaign.
Though Arteta confirmed that the surgery was successful, White is set for a lengthy spell out of the team.
"It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately," said Arteta.
"We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.
"He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months."
Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: "We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don't expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly."
It offers a concern for Arteta in the full-back area, with the Spaniard also revealing on Friday that Takehiro Tomiyasu is "going to be out as well for a bit".
There was, however, some positive injury news for the Gunners ahead of welcoming Nottingham Forest to the Emirates on Saturday.
After not featuring for England during the international break, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are expected to be fit to feature against Nuno Espirito Santo's side.
Leandro Trossard will also be available for Arteta despite picking up a hamstring injury during the international break with Belgium.
Defender Riccardo Calafiori is also in contention for Saturday's game after a month out with a knee problem.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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