Middlesbrough Edges Wrexham in Carabao Cup Opener
Will Lankshear’s debut goal gave Middlesbrough the perfect start to their season, edging out Wrexham 1-0 in a tight Carabao Cup first-round tie.
The £10m summer signing from Tottenham needed just one clear sight of goal to decide it. On 61 minutes, Leo Castledine rose to glance Jeremy Sarmiento’s cross into his path. Lankshear did the rest. One touch to swivel, one ruthless hook of the right boot, and his first-time volley flashed into the far corner. One chance, one clean finish, and Boro were on their way.
It might have been far more comfortable by then.
Middlesbrough almost struck inside seven minutes. Sebastian Berhalter whipped in a teasing ball and Adilson Malanda stabbed it goalwards from close range, only for Danny Ward to throw himself in the way with a superb point-blank stop. A huge early let-off for Wrexham, who spent long spells pinned back but refused to fold.
The visitors still carved out moments of their own. Danny Imray found space in the box from a Callum Doyle cross but couldn’t make a proper connection, the chance dribbling away rather than exploding into life. Six minutes before half-time, Nathan Broadhead rolled Sam Smith into space and the forward drilled low, only to see Sol Brynn block with his legs. It was the kind of save that keeps a cup tie on a knife edge.
Lankshear began to bend it Boro’s way after the interval. Early in the second half he curled an effort just over the bar, a warning of what was to come. When the decisive moment arrived, he didn’t hesitate. The strike had the confidence of a player who believes he belongs at this level, and the Riverside crowd responded accordingly.
Middlesbrough almost killed the contest late on. With three minutes left, Morgan Whittaker drove low across goal, beating Ward but not the woodwork as his effort cannoned back off the post. Wrexham stayed alive, but they never found the equaliser their effort threatened, and Boro marched into the second round with their new striker already on the scoresheet.
Wolves cruise as Jimenez returns
At Molineux, Wolves took care of business early, brushing aside Port Vale 3-0 with a clinical first-half display that gave new boss Cesar Peixoto a smooth introduction to life in the dugout.
Adam Armstrong, Andre and Fer Lopez shared the goals, each strike tightening Wolves’ grip before the break and draining the jeopardy from the contest. Port Vale, under Jon Brady, did not simply roll over. Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel produced one of the more eye-catching defensive moments of the night, hooking an extraordinary chance away from his own goal before half-time to prevent further damage.
The visitors’ best opportunity to give their travelling fans something to cheer came from the spot. Mo Faal stepped up, went low, and found only the legs of Dan Bentley, who stood firm to preserve his clean sheet and deny Vale even a consolation.
In the stands, the narrative tilted towards one man. Raul Jimenez, Wolves’ Premier League top scorer and a cult figure at the club, returned after three years at Fulham and entered as a late substitute to a warm reception from the home crowd. He unleashed one fierce effort, a reminder of his old menace, but could not cap the occasion with a goal. Port Vale’s resistance in the second half ensured the scoreline stayed respectable, yet it is Wolves who move on, their season already beginning to gather a little rhythm.
Magennis steals it at the death for Stevenage
Wycombe and Stevenage traded blows, but it was a new face who delivered the knockout punch. Josh Magennis, a summer signing from Exeter, rose in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time to head Stevenage into the second round with a dramatic 2-1 win.
The goal came from a classic late-cup-tie set-piece. Phoenix Patterson swung in a left-wing corner, Magennis attacked it with conviction, and the ball crashed home. On the club’s 50th anniversary season, it felt like a fittingly dramatic opening chapter.
Stevenage had already shown their resilience. Wycombe started on the front foot, but it was the visitors who struck first on 27 minutes. Dan Kemp pounced on hesitancy in the home defence, racing clear and drilling a low finish that silenced the home crowd and flipped the mood.
Wycombe’s response was sharp. Ten minutes later, Silko Thomas drove down the left and picked out Ewan Henderson, who slipped through the visiting back line to steer a right-footed effort in from just outside the six-yard box. Level again, the home side pushed, but Stevenage refused to retreat.
On the stroke of half-time, Kemp almost produced a second, rattling the crossbar from the edge of the box with a fierce strike that had the goalkeeper beaten. It was a warning that Stevenage, for all Wycombe’s possession, remained dangerous.
After the interval, Wycombe took control of the ball but not the scoreboard. They pressed, probed, and searched for a way through. The best of their chances fell to substitute Emre Tezgel in the 77th minute, only for Boro captain Carl Piergianni to intervene brilliantly as the forward tried to force in another Thomas cross from the left.
That block kept Stevenage alive. Magennis did the rest, rising in stoppage time to turn a stubborn away performance into a statement win.
Cup campaigns rarely follow a straight line. On this evidence, Middlesbrough, Wolves and Stevenage intend to make theirs last.
