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League One newcomers Crewe Alexandra have suffered their first defeat in the EFL Trophy this season after they lost a thrilling clash with Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday night. The two League One teams shared a seven-goal thriller with Crewe Alexandra ending on the wrong side of the outcome.
The 4-3 win for Shrewsbury Town ensured that The Shrews finished as group winners ahead of Crewe Alexandra in Group C of the Northern Section in the 2020/21 EFL Trophy. Both Shrewsbury Town and Crewe Alexandra have qualified for the next stage (round of 32) after winning their first two games in the group.
Hosts Crewe Alexandra led 3-2 into the final 14 minutes of the game with The Shrews before their opponents secured the victory with two late goals courtesy Shilow Tracey who was the star of the show. Tracey had earlier scored his first goal for Shrewsbury Town to edge Sam Ricketts’ side 2-0 up after Matt Millar had opened the scoring with a well-timed header.
Crewe Alexandra fought back from 2-0 down with three goals to take the scoreline to 3-2 but they could not hold on for victory as Shilow Tracey proved to be too much for their rearguard with his late brace to complete his hattrick. OffrandeZanzala and Daniel Powell both scored toensure that David Artell’s side went into the half-time interval on level terms. Powell then added his second goal on the hour to edge Crewe 3-2 ahead before theShilow Tracey began.
David Artell was named the Crewe Alexandra manager in January 2017 and he has done well to lead the team back to the third tier of English football (League One). He led Crewe to second place in League Two last season thereby securing promotion into League One. Crewe Alexandra have 10 points from 10 league games and are in 18th spot on the League One standings, while their EFL Trophy opponents Shrewsbury Town are third from bottom on the 24-team League One table with seven points from 10 league matches.