Ben Fisher was in Cardiff tonight. His report has landed. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night.
Rob Page speaks to S4C. “We’re disappointed, of course we are … Ben Davies said in the huddle on the pitch that we gave a great performance … I’ve got to be careful what I say … we could have had two penalties and it seemed like a soft penalty … sometimes it goes for you, sometimes it doesn’t … that level of performance is what we need … if we do that when we get back together in March we’ll be OK … we’re disappointed with the home game against Armenia, that’s the one that came back to bite us … but did we expect to beat Croatia at home and get a point away? … probably not, so it all adds up in the end … to come into the last camp with a chance to qualify is an incredible achievement for the group … we’re disappointed but I’m off tomorrow to find out who we’ve got in the draw and we’ll build on what we’ve seen tonight and against Croatia.”
Wales now go into the play-offs. They’ll have a home tie against either Finland, Ukraine or Iceland, then if they make it through they’ll travel to the winners of the Poland-Estonia tie. The semi-final will be played on 21 March 2024.
Tonight’s results mean Group D finishes like this.
1. Turkey 17pts (Q)
2. Croatia 16pts (Q)
3. Wales 12pts (P)
4. Armenia 8pts
5. Latvia 3pts
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An unnecessary scuffle breaks out. Roberts is in the thick of it, and he’s shown a yellow card. A sour end to an evening that for 36 first-half minutes promised much.
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FULL TIME: Wales 1-1 Turkey
If Wales are to make it to Euro 2024, they’ll have to do so via the play-offs.
90 min +4: Brooks sends a flat one in. A Turkish head flicks out for a corner. Brooks to take. Ward to come up for it!
90 min +3: Roberts is knocked over under a high ball. A free kick out on the right. Everyone lines up on the edge of the box. Brooks to curl it in.
90 min +2: Dan James crosses low from the left. His namesake Jordan extends a leg and tries to steer into the bottom left. Always going wide.
90 min +1: The first of four additional minutes ticks by.
FULL TIME: Croatia 1-0 Armenia. It’s the play-offs for Wales.
89 min: Özcan becomes the latest player to go into the referee’s jotter.
88 min: Wales press Turkey back, but Ampadu needlessly tugs at Yazıcı and releases the pressure. “A few months ago, I’d written everything off,” writes Matt Dony. “Since the win against Croatia, I’ve been a lot more hopeful. But, eh, tournament football’s overrated, isn’t it? Just because Euro 2016 was one of the most amazing months of my sporting life, doesn’t mean I want it again. Honest. This is all fine. Sigh.”
87 min: Dan James sends Roberts into space down the right but his cross doesn’t find Moore. Turkey counter through Aktürkoğlu, who nearly gets clear down the right but is stopped by a sterling cruncher from Rodon. Proper last-ditch heroics.
85 min: Moore comes on for Williams.
84 min: … and Cardiff sighs again as Brooks dinks a ball down the inside-right channel to release Johnson, who draws Bayındır, wedges over the keeper, and sends the ball in off the base of the left-hand post. But he’s gone too early. A roar then a groan. Clearly offside.
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83 min: Roberts fails to beat the first man. Cardiff sighs as one.
82 min: A free kick for Turkey out on the right. Aktürkoğlu swings it in. Ward claims with confidence and sets Wales off on the counter. Kadıoğlu shoves Brooks into touch down the right, and it’ll now be Wales’s turn to stick one into the mixer. Before the set piece can be taken, Aktürkoğlu is booked for having his say.
80 min: Dan James comes on for Harry Wilson.
78 min: Sari makes way for Kaan Ayhan.
76 min: A little of the fight has gone out of Wales. They could do with remembering that it’s still only 1-0 to Croatia against Armenia.
74 min: Wilson loses possession in the Turkish half and Sari romps off on the counter. Sari has options in the middle, but decides to go it alone. He cuts in from the right and unleashes a glorious rising diagonal shot towards the top left. Ward is beaten all ends up. The ball skims off the top of the post and out for a goal kick. That was so close to a sensational strike.
72 min: Wales feel aggrieved, and not just about the penalty. Yüksek clatters Wilson and avoids yellow. Çelik then skittles Williams; he isn’t so lucky. He’ll miss Turkey’s next competitive match.
GOAL! Wales 1-1 Turkey (Yazıcı 70)
Yazıcı gives Ward the eyes. Ward goes early. Yazıcı slips the ball into the bottom right as the keeper goes the other way. So calm. Wales in trouble now.
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Penalty for Turkey!
69 min: … Davies needlessly shoves Yıldız with Ward busy claiming the long punt. The referee points to the spot, then books Davies.
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68 min: Ward flaps at a cross. He gets away with it. But then another long ball’s pumped into the box, and …
66 min: Viaplay have their critics. But after the mics catch a frustrated Welsh fan effing and jeffing in a very clear manner, they signally don’t bother to issue a craven apology. Hats off to them. We’re all grown ups and it’s after the watershed, after all.
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64 min: Kadıoğlu embarks on a sensational dribble down the left flank to win a corner. It comes to nothing, but Turkey have looked much better since the break. It’s still 1-0 to Croatia against Armenia in Zagreb. Nerves jangling all across the continent.
62 min: Rob Page makes his first change of the evening. Nathan Broadhead, who has played very well tonight, makes way for David Brooks. The new man immediately gets involved, unfortunately so, as Johnson dribbles in from the left and shoots, only for his effort to be blocked by the over-eager sub.
60 min: Now it’s Wales’s turn to send a close-range header straight at the keeper. Good work by Wilson down the right; he stands one up for Ampadu, whose effort from six yards is easy pickings for Bayındır.
59 min: Kenan Yıldız comes on for the disappointing Barış Alper Yılmaz.
58 min: Sari and Çelik combine crisply down the right. The latter’s low cross looks dangerous but is deflected out by Ampadu. And from the resulting corner, Ward’s palms are warmed at last! Akaydin fires a header straight at the keeper from six yards. Either side of Ward and that was in, but it was a fine save nonetheless.
56 min: Çelik busies himself down the right and wins a corner. Aktürkoğlu swings it in. Rodon batters a header clear. Turkey continue to enjoy the lion’s share of possession, but have still to seriously warm Ward’s hands.
55 min: Some strange decisions tonight.
53 min: Wilson and Ampadu combine at warp speed down the inside-right channel. Wilson goes over and wants a penalty. He’s not getting one, though Yazıcı had accidentally stood on his foot once possession had been lost. When play stops, Yazıcı is booked, presumably for something he said.
51 min: Sarı crosses from the right. Rodon heads clear. Özcan chests down and attempts to dispatch a screamer goalwards. He sends the ball high, wide and not so handsome. Full marks for ambition, mind; had he got that on target, it’d have been a belter.
50 min: Nothing comes of the corner.
49 min: This is better! Broadhead slips a pass down the inside-right channel to release Johnson, who enters the area and whistles a low diagonal drive towards the bottom left. It’s heading in, and Bayındır does exceptionally well to fingertip around the post for a corner.
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48 min: It’s all pretty shapeless right now. “Wales were pretty impressive in the first half but I’d be surprised if Türkiye don’t pull this one back,” sighs Dean Kinsella.
47 min: It’s still an odd atmosphere. Nobody’s particularly happy with their lot at the moment.
Turkey get the ball rolling again, having made another tactical change. Zeki Çelik comes on for Cenk Özkacar.
Half-time entertainment.
HALF TIME: Croatia 1-0 Armenia. Confirmation that the Croatians lead at the break in Zagreb thanks to Ante Budimir’s 43rd-minute goal.
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HALF TIME: Wales 1-0 Turkey
Wales are doing all they can. Croatia, leading against Armenia, aren’t playing ball. As things stand, it’s Croatia and Turkey who’ll qualify automatically from Group D; Wales will be heading to the play-offs in March.
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45 min +4: … ah no, Wilson dummies and Broadhead takes it instead. He sends it over everyone’s head and out for a throw. That should be pretty much that for the first half.
45 min +3: Wilson nips in from the right flank and draws a clumsy foul from Özkacar. He’ll get up and send this free kick into the box.
45 min +1: The news of that Croatian goal has sucked all of the air out of the stadium.
45 min: There will be four added minutes.
44 min: Wilson spins in the box and aims to thread a shot into the bottom left. Bayındır parries with great uncertainty, but claims at the second attempt. The effort isn’t met with much cheer, though, as news filters through that Ante Budimir has given Croatia the lead against Armenia just before half time. As things now stand, Croatia will win the group and Wales will have to navigate the play-offs.
42 min: The first period of sustained Turkish possession nearly results in a goal. Ping, pass, probe. Then Özkacar crosses from the right. Yazıcı flicks on, and Aktürkoğlu blazes over from six yards. He should have hit the target at the very least. He probably should have scored.
40 min: Rodon ushers the ball out for a goal kick. Yimlaz clambers over his back and then falls on him deliberately. Rodon thinks about losing his rag, then decides against taking the bait. Turkey’s frustration is betraying them.
38 min: Ward fizzes a long pass wide left. Davies heads on for Williams, and he’s away down the wing. Turkey showing very little resistance right now. Fortunately for the visitors, Williams doesn’t have anyone in support and the slick move fizzles out.
36 min: Aktürkoğlu tries to hook a right-wing cross goalwards. He only achieves a waft, and it’s easy pickings for Ward, who has been a virtual bystander so far.
35 min: A Wales free kick near the centre circle. Wilson launches it long down the left. Davies gets on the end of it but can’t direct a header across the face of goal. Out it goes for a goal kick.
34 min: Bayındır’s first act is to punch Broadhead’s corner clear. It’s still goalless in Zagreb.
33 min: … and in addition to the enforced change, Vincenzo Montella makes a tactical one. Ömür makes way for Yazıcı.
32 min: Cakir is replaced by Altay Bayındır of Manchester United …
31 min: It appears the VAR check is over. No penalty. What a fiasco. Nobody knows anything any more. But before the corner can be taken, Cakir needs more treatment.
29 min: … and here they come again, Broadhead and Roberts combining down the right to win a corner. Wilson sends it deep. There’s some head tennis. Johnson attempts to bring down the ball, waits for it to drop, and … is skittled from behind by Akaydin. The referee merely awards another corner, but surely VAR will take a look at this?! Akaydin shoved him over from behind and got nothing of the ball. Very odd.
28 min: Rodon sends a long pass down the right to Johnson, who tees up Wilson for … what? A run into the box? A shot? Wilson can’t seem to make up his mind and dinks across for Williams instead, and the momentum is lost. But Wales are having an awful lot of joy down this right wing.
26 min: Johnson races down the right and enters the box. Akaydin slides in to concede a corner. Did he get more man than ball? He may well have done, you know. There was contact, though neither referee nor VAR shows an interest in awarding a penalty. Nothing comes of the resulting corner.
24 min: Turkey win their first corner of the evening. It’s played back down the right flank for Sari, who attempts to find Özkacar on the other wing with a spectacular diagonal rake. Too spectacular, as it turns out. The ball flies away for a goal kick. Turkey have achieved very little in attack so far.
22 min: Brilliant work by Jordan James, who steals the ball from Özcan in midfield and feeds Wilson down the inside-right channel. Wilson reaches the edge of the penalty area only to lose out physically to Bardakcı. He wants a spot kick, but he’s not even getting the foul. Johnson then clatters into Bardakcı, and follows that up by going nose to nose with the defender in the macho style. The referee comes across, tells Johnson to stop being so bloody daft, and books him.
20 min: Cakir goes down requiring some treatment. He’d been given something of a working-over by Wilson and Davies at that last corner, and on comes the trainer with his magic sponge. Thankfully he’s OK to continue for now, though he’s grimacing quite a lot.
18 min: It’s still goalless in Zagreb between Croatia and Armenia. As things stand, Wales will qualify for Euro 2024 at Croatia’s expense, level on points but with the head-to-head advantage.
16 min: Broadhead hits it long. Lockyer wins a header at the far post, sending the ball back across the face of goal. Davies prepares to hook home only for Akaydin to eyebrow out for another corner. A goal-saving intervention. Nothing comes of the second corner.
15 min: Williams and Broadhead combine nicely down the left. Kadıoğlu just about stops them making it into the box, but at the expense of a corner. Broadhead to take.
13 min: Wilson starts another attack with a first-time pass down the middle for Johnson, who back-flicks into the path of Broadhead. He dribbles in from the left and attempts to find Wilson, who had kept running down the right channel, with a diagonal pass. It’s intercepted. Shame, because that would have been a picture-book goal.
11 min: Turkey have had 61 percent of possession so far … but it’s Wales who have carried the most threat.
9 min: Ampadu comes through the back of Yilmaz, 30 yards out on the left. A chance for Turkey to respond quickly. But Sari’s floated free kick is no good, and Broadhead is able to counter at pace down the right. He’s not got enough support to keep the attack going, but this is seriously impressive stuff by Wales, who are clearly not in the mood to die wondering.
GOAL! Wales 1-0 Turkey (Williams 7)
They’ll be more than happy with it now! Wilson turns into a little space down the middle and sprays a pass wide left for Williams, who drops a shoulder to stride infield. He opens up his body and steers an unstoppable curler into the bottom right! It’s on!
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6 min: Roberts with another throw from the right. Turkey clear it easily enough. Wales will be happy enough with this start, though.
5 min: Kadıoğlu’s loose ball allows Broadhead to storm down the left. He drifts infield and curls a low shot towards the bottom right. Cakir ushers it past the post. Decent effort, but it was covered.
4 min: James busies himself down the right but can’t find anyone with his low cross. The ball deflects out for a throw. Thoughts of the goal against Armenia on Saturday as Roberts flings in long from the right. But Cakir comes through a crowded box to claim with confidence. Great keeping.
2 min: Cakir launches long down the right. The nippy Sari nearly gets the better of Rodon but the Wales left-back does well to stick to his opponent’s shoulder and ensure he can’t enter the box.
Wales get the ball rolling. Both sets of fans giving it plenty. The latest from Zagreb when we have it.
The teams line up in the tunnel. Turkish sub Çağlar Söyüncü comes over and embraces his former Leicester team-mate Danny Ward. Then Ben Davies leads his team out onto the pitch. A huge roar of anticipation at the Cardiff City Stadium. Wales wear their famous red, while Turkey sport first-choice white. Won’t be too long now. Some patriotic close-harmonising, the swapping of pennants, and then we’ll be off.
Rob Page speaks to S4C. “It’s fresh legs … Kieffer [Moore] put such a big shift in … he’s not getting many minutes … it’s a bit unrealistic to ask him to do it again for 90 minutes … he’ll definitely have an impact from the bench … we need energy … Turkey are top of the table for a reason and they’ve shown that against Germany with wholesale changes [they won 3-2 in a Berlin friendly on Saturday] … we have to respect that … we’ve proven at this stadium against top teams that we can compete … we can’t worry about the other fixture … we can only control this so full focus will be on getting the win here.”
The good news for Wales tonight: they’ve never lost to Turkey at home. They’ve welcomed the Crescent-Stars on three previous occasions, winning twice and drawing the other, and kept a clean sheet in every game. The bad news: Turkey have won their last four away matches, while Wales have lost three of their last six competitive home fixtures. History’s not much use if you want to make an early call.
Pre-match reading. It was 30 years ago today, give or take. Oh Paul.
Wales make three changes to the starting line-up from the 1-1 draw in Armenia. Tom Lockyear replaces the suspended Chris Mepham, while Brennan Johnson and Nathan Broadhead come in for David Brooks and Kieffer Moore, both of whom drop to the bench.
Turkey captain Hakan Çalhanoğlu, of Internazionale, is missing for the visitors, who have already qualified for Euro 2024. Goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır takes over pennant-swapping duties.
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The teams
Wales: Ward, Roberts, Lockyer, Davies, Rodon, Broadhead, Jordan James, Ampadu, Williams, Johnson, Wilson.
Subs: Cabango, Moore, Huggins, Sheehan, Cullen, Brooks, King, Daniel James, Morrell, Dasilva, Bradshaw, Hennessey.
Turkey: Cakir, Kadioglu, Akaydin, Bardakci, Ozkacar, Yuksek, Sari, Omur, Salih Ozcan, Akturkoglu, Baris Yilmaz.
Subs: Celik, Yildiz, Bayindir, Kutlu, Yazici, Soyuncu, Kahveci, Ozdemir, Elmali, Kabak, Gunok, Ayhan.
Referee: Matej Jug (Slovenia).
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Preamble
On Saturday afternoon this happened …
… which means Wales have to beat Group C leaders Turkey tonight and hope Croatia slip up at home to Armenia. If the two results go their way, Y Dreigiau are off to Euro 2024. If they don’t, Rob Page’s men are play-off bound. Kick off at Cardiff City Stadium is at 7.45pm GMT. Mae ymlaen!
