Rob Page revealed Nathan Broadhead was in tears after netting a dramatic equaliser for Wales on his international debut against Croatia.
The Ipswich Town forward replaced Harry Wilson in the 64th minute of the Euro 2024 qualifier in Split and fired beyond Dominik Livakovic in the third minute of second-half injury-time to earn Page's men a remarkable point against the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists.
And boss Page admits former Everton man Broadhead fully deserved his chance to shine having been on the fringes of the senior setup for several years.
"I'm really pleased for him," said Page. "He's not going to like me saying this but, it's an emotional game, he was in tears at the end of the game with the supporters. It means the world to him.
"I've worked with Nathan in the under-21s in Toulon six or seven years ago. I know Broady, I've watched his development and he's earned the right to be part of the squad now.
"I've known all about Broady before this camp and we've been itching to get him involved."
Few gave the Red Dragons hope of claiming a positive result at Stadion Poljud prior to kick-off, and after Andrej Kramaric fired Zlatko Dalic's troops ahead before the half hour mark, Croatia appeared destined to secure all three points.
However, Kramaric, Borna Sosa and Mateo Kovacic all spurned chances to seal victory which left the door open for substitute Broadhead to prod home an equaliser at the back post after Chris Mepham flicked on Connor Roberts' long throw-in, with Page admitting the point felt like a victory.
"It feels like a win," he said. "When you get the equaliser like we did late on in the game it feels like a win. I think the lads deserved it for the effort they put in, they put a right shift in.
"We knew we were going to have to suffer without the ball and it came true. They're a very good team and we had to be disciplined in our shape. I knew that, as the game went on, we'd create chances.
"We thought DJ's (Daniel James) chance might be the one but Nathan Broadhead popped up at the end and got his chance and took it well."
Wales now go into Tuesday night's clash with Latvia aiming to build on their point in Croatia, and they will hope to get more out of the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Kieffer Moore, Daniel James and Wilson at Cardiff City Stadium after the attacking quartet were all withdrawn just after the hour mark in Split.
And Page revealed their lack of game-time at club level meant the coaching staff were eager to make the substitutions to ensure they could all be fresh for what will be a key contest in the Welsh capital.
"We'd planned it last week," Page said of the substitutions. "The four forwards we had on the pitch are not playing at club level.
"We had a target for the points we wanted to get, it's all about the home game for us, that was the winnable game, and we always knew that on the hour we were going to make those substitutions.
"It's beneficial to keep them fresh now for Tuesday."
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