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Wrexham thrashed by Southampton in battle of two sides chasing a Championship play-off place Victory sees Saints leapfrog Wrexham and into top six Southampton now unbeaten in 16 matches across all competitions Southampton's Cyle Larin and Finn Azaz both hit crossbar before Kuryu Matsuki gives visitors early lead Flynn Downes steers in the second goal as Saints dominate opening quarter Nathan Broadhead heads against the post before Josh Windass pulls a goal back for Wrexham before half-time Cyle Larin races clear to restore Southampton's two-goal lead just after the hour Kieffer Moore heads against the post before Finn Azaz rattles the Wrexham woodwork for a second time Ross Stewart heads in fourth Southampton goal late on before Finn Azaz guides in the fifth Dafydd Pritchard Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Southampton's Ryan Manning scored an excellent free-kick in their opening-day win over Wrexham. Saints have a free-kick within shooting distance on this occasion but an apparent training-ground move goes awry as Finn Azaz overhits his lobbed pass. Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Ian Mitchelmore BBC Sport Wales at Stok Cae Ras The home fans definitely have more optimism than they did after half an hour or so. Their press is better than it was early on, and it's pushing the visitors back into their own half, which was a rarity early on. The benches could be key to the outcome tonight. Wrexham 1-2 Southampton I like Chris in Cheshire's optimism (21: 09). Automatic promotion is not out of the question but Ipswich, who are second, will still be six points ahead of Southampton with a game in hand even if Saints win tonight. Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Wrexham's first corner of the second half comes to nothing, and then Issa Kabore is well tracked by Ryan Manning, who earns Saints a goal kick. Use the 'Send us your views' box Fourth/fifth [place] I'd take. But with Ipswich to still play, and the form of some of the other play-off teams, second is still on the cards. (Just). Chris, Cheshire Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Southampton start the second half as they did the first: on top. Ryan Manning and Cyle Larin involved heavily in their attacks so far. Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Waynne Phillips Former Wrexham midfielder on BBC Radio Wales I'm sure both benches will be key yet again. It has become a game of 15-16 players these days where every player has a part to play. Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Here we go then. Second half under way. A huge 45 minutes for both these sides' hopes of making the Championship play-offs. HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton The players are making their way back on to the field at Stok Cae Ras. Let's hope the second half serves up as much entertainment as the first. HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton This is how the top half of the Championship table looks as things stand with Southampton leading Wrexham 2-1. Use the 'Send us your views' box Southampton on top but don't write off Wrexham. Wrexham have been here before. But Southampton look strong tonight as they did at the weekend. Maybe tired legs in the last 20 minutes? Clutching at straws I think Elwyn, Cardiff Use the 'Send us your views' box If you had said at the start of the season Wrexham would be in the top half of the table, I would have taken it. Well played this season. Exceeded expectations Elwyn, Wales Use the 'Send us your views' box Yes the play-offs might be a step too far for Wrexham, but all credit to Phil Parkinson for an incredible journey to this point. It'll be a hard act to follow next season. Dave, Brighouse Use the 'Send us your views' box I know Saints have a lot of games this month but I strongly believe they will finish fifth. Robert, Southampton HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Turning the focus away from this game for a moment, news emerged today that Wrexham goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo is now eligible to represent Nigeria after his international switch of allegiance from England was approved by Fifa. Born in Camden to Nigerian parents, Okonkwo represented England at various youth levels, including under-18, during his time at Arsenal. The 24-year-old joined Wrexham on a season-long loan in 2023 before making the move permanent in the summer of 2024. HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Waynne Phillips Former Wrexham midfielder on BBC Radio Wales This game isn't done yet, Southampton will know that. For 25-30 minutes, they were cruising and they looked the best team I've seen at Wrexham this season. But then you could see faults in their play that suggest to me that Wrexham can certainly go on to get the next goal. Can they make it a special night at the Stok Cae Ras? Use the 'Send us your views' box Switched over from the Champions League games - this game is far more exciting. June, Larne HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Ian Mitchelmore BBC Sport Wales at Stok Cae Ras What an enthralling second half we have ahead of us. Wrexham looked destined for a grim defeat after half an hour, but they significantly improved in the final 15 minutes or so to keep themselves in this contest. A quick glance at the two benches may be rather concerning for Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson, though. Tonda Eckert has an incredible amount of talent at his disposal. Still, everything to play for here in north Wales. Use the 'Send us your views' box Saints have more goals in this one and plenty on the bench. Wrexham have gambled with all their forwards starting. Keith, Southampton HT: Wrexham 1-2 Southampton Waynne Phillips Former Wrexham midfielder on BBC Radio Wales You have to admire the quality that was shown by Southampton in that period where they went 2-0 up. I thought they were terrific. But there has been a response, at least, from Wrexham. It's not been brilliant but they have a goal that gives them a chance in the game. Flynn Downes was among the scorers Southampton leapfrogged Wrexham into sixth place in the Championship with an emphatic victory over their play-off rivals at Stok Cae Ras. Kuryu Matsuki and Flynn Downes both netted early goals for the visitors, who dominated from the outset. Having been second best in the opening 30 minutes, the hosts grew into the contest and responded through Josh Windass' composed finish. But Cyle Larin took advantage of a loose pass after the hour mark to rifle home - with Ross Stewart and Finn Azaz adding further efforts late on as the Saints sealed a fifth successive win. Southampton - who boast a game in hand over each of their top-six rivals - move up one place and two points above the Red Dragons, who drop to seventh. The Saints - showing six changes from their memorable 2-1 FA Cup quarter-final win over Arsenal three days earlier - showed no signs of a hangover early on in north Wales. They were twice thwarted by the framework of the Wrexham goal in a matter of seconds as Larin headed Ryan Manning's delivery on to the crossbar, with Azaz nodding the rebound against the bar. But they were not to be denied four minutes later as Azaz picked out Matsuki, who drilled into the bottom corner to beat Arthur Okonkwo at the goalkeeper's near post. Saints' attacking intent was rewarded again just 10 minutes later as James Bree's free-kick deflected off George Dobson and looped into the path of Downes, whose sweetly-struck volley from 15 yards out flew into the net. The hosts looked shell-shocked as the travelling Southampton supporters revelled in their side's dominance. Wrexham finally showed signs of life in attack after the half-hour mark. They almost reduced the Saints' lead when Max Cleworth's cross found Nathan Broadhead, whose glancing header struck the post. They did pull a goal back a minute later as Okonkwo's long punt upfield was flicked on by Kieffer Moore, and Windass showed great composure to slot beyond Daniel Peretz. The second half was a far more even affair - with Okonkwo doing enough to keep out Larin's shot, before Cleworth's deflected strike sailed wide at the other end. But just as Wrexham's momentum was growing, Larin intercepted Lewis O'Brien's pass before charging down on goal and firing beyond Okonkwo. The strike was Larin's fifth goal since joining on loan from Mallorca on transfer deadline day in February. The hosts refused to let their heads drop and Moore headed Issa Kabore's cross on to the base of the post from close range soon after. The visitors managed to take the sting out of the contest though, and after Azaz rifled against the post, Stewart headed fellow substitute Welington's free-kick into the net. Just two minutes later, Azaz capitalised on a defensive mix-up to put the gloss on his side's stellar showing, as Tonda Eckert's men stretched their unbeaten league run to 13 league games in emphatic fashion. Wrexham AFC Southampton FC Southampton are unbeaten in 16 matches across all competitions For the first time in this remarkable run-in, Southampton's play-off destiny is now firmly in their own hands. They were simply mesmerising early on and could have been more than 2-0 up. To their credit, after being blown away for half an hour, Wrexham showed the kind of fighting spirit that has been the foundation of the club's three successive promotions to get themselves back into the contest. But they left themselves with too much to do against a Saints side who not only look destined to secure a top-six spot, but could go into the play-offs as the form team - and potentially favourites as a result. This was ultimately just another three points, but it was also a statement from Eckert's men who inflicted a heaviest defeat of the season on Phil Parkinson's outfit. This video can not be played Parkinson: Southampton loss 'won't define our season' Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson: "We haven't had many games like that since I've been here. "You can't give a good team opportunities like we gave them tonight. They're a good side and they punished us. " Southampton boss Tonda Eckert: "I think it helped us a lot that we had some freshness in the team today. "We knew that we needed to take control early on, and we did this, especially in the first 20-25 minutes. "Overall I thought we had good control. We knew that if we stayed and worked in our structure, we would get some moments in the second half and I thought we did that well. " After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users. Comments can not be loaded To load Comments you need to enable Java Script in your browser Last Updated 7th April 2026 at 21: 55 Please Note: All times UK. Tables are subject to change. The BBC is not responsible for any changes that may be made. Manager: Phil Parkinson Formation: 3 - 5 - 2 Manager: Tonda Eckert Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Phil Parkinson Formation: 3 - 5 - 2 Manager: Tonda Eckert Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Championship All competitions All competitions All competitions This is just Wrexham’s third home league game against Southampton – they lost 3-1 in February 1959,   and won 2-1 in April 1960. The away side won the first two league meetings between Wrexham and Southampton in 1958-59, with the home side winning each of the subsequent three. Wrexham have only failed to score in one of their last 25 home league games, a 2-0 loss to Millwall in February. Southampton are unbeaten in their last 12 league games (W9 D3), and are looking to keep three consecutive clean sheets for the first time since December 2023. Wrexham’s Nathan Broadhead has scored four goals in his last six home league games, and is looking to score in three consecutive Football League home games for the first time since October 2023 (a run of four with Ipswich). Copyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.