Wayne Rooney reveals Wrexham game was best he's seen since retiring - even topping seven-goal Inter-Barcelona Champions League semi-final epic

Wrexham’s hope of a Hollywood ending to their FA Cup journey was ruthlessly snatched away by Chelsea and the video assistant referee on a night of high drama at the Cae Ras. The north Wales outfit were dreaming of another historic upset when Lewis Brunt headed home what he thought was a dramatic equaliser in the 114th minute of extra time, sparking delirium in the stands. However, the intervention of VAR for a marginal offside silenced the home crowd and paved the way for the Premier League side to finally assert their dominance and secure a 4-2 victory.

Rooney, who was present at the Racecourse Ground, was impressed by the match. He compared it to the game between Inter and Barcelona in last season's Champions League semi-final. The Nerazzurri defeated the Blaugrana 4-3, securing a 7-6 aggregate victory. The match was dubbed by many as the greatest Champions League fixture of all time.

"Do you know what? I think it's (Wrexham's defeat to Chelsea) the most I've enjoyed the game of football since I stopped playing," Rooney told BBC Sport. "Just the atmosphere, the fans. We had to walk through the fans quite a bit to get the pitch out and stuff and the fans were great. It's probably the first time I've been to a stadium and not been given any stick as well, so... Yeah, that was nice, but not just the atmosphere, the game. I thought it was a really good game. Wrexham were excellent."

"My favourite game since I stopped playing was Barcelona Inter.  It was the semi-final last year and this one's took over. I really enjoyed it."

However, Rooney didn't have the chance to catch up with Wrexham owners Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds, despite the Hollywood celebrities being at the game as well. Rooney and Reynolds have met before, as they were involved in a promotional video for the first Deadpool film in 2016, and when asked if he would be involved in the next Deadpool film, Rooney replied: "No, [but] I was in the Deadpool commercial a few years back."

As the curtain falls on Wrexham's cup run, the club remains focused on their ultimate goal of securing a fourth successive promotion to reach the Premier League. The narrow margins of defeat against a Chelsea side packed with international talent will serve as a marker for their progress under their Hollywood ownership, with the Welsh club back in action on Tuesday night when they host Hull City.