Kieffer Moore was sent off as Armenia produced one of the high-scoring football results of the weekend in Euro 2024 qualifying. Wales had four points from their first two games, thus a victory would have put them at the top of Group D. Dan James gave Wales the ideal start within of nine minutes. However, complacency took hold, allowing energetic Armenia to score twice before halftime thanks to Lucas Zelarayan and the intriguing 19-year-old Grant-Leon Ranos. After the break, Wales was supposed to launch an all-out assault on the visitors’ goal, but their effort fell flat as Ranos took advantage of further shoddy defense from Wales to score a third goal with an exquisite finish. With 18 minutes left, Harry Wilson appeared to have set up a thrilling conclusion, but Zelarayan scored his second goal just a few seconds later, dampening the mood in Cardiff.
as Moore was given a straight red for what seemed to be a kick on Armenia goalkeeper Ognjen Cancarevic, who was celebrating like he had scored the game-winning goal with his teammates as the referee issued the Welsh striker the card, Wales’ task became more difficult as time ran down. The one bright spot on a bad night for Wales was the entrance of David Brooks, who was among the substitutes after re-joining the team for the first time since being diagnosed with stage-two Hodgkin’s cancer in October 2021. Wales suffered their first home loss in a European Championship qualification campaign in 12 years, which puts them in a very difficult position for a top-two finish in Group D.
Wales put on early pressure with the help of Connor Roberts’ long throws, and Moore should have done better with a few headed opportunities. James was set up for an easy finish by Brennan Johnson’s exquisite cross in the 10th minute, which led to the goal. Eduard Spertsyan’s narrow headshot following the goal gave Armenia hope, but Wales did not pay attention to that warning. A little while later, Zelarayan sent a lovely volley beyond Nair Tiknizyan after he had centered from the left.
Wales’ situation worsened when Joe Rodon turned the ball over in his own half, where Spertsyan’s accurate pass arced over Chris Mepham for the unmarked Ranos to score. Following the restart, James missed the mark, but Wales grew increasingly furious as Ranos bamboozled Rodon and scored an unstoppable goal past Danny Ward. When Moore headed down at the far post and Wilson punched home from close range, Wales got back into the game with 18 minutes remaining.
However, Armenia struck back as Ranos hit the crossbar and Zelarayan scored his second goal after Joe Morrell was robbed of possession. After receiving a heavy penalty for a fight with Chancharevich, Moore will miss Wales’ Monday trip to Turkey; as a result, the game now has greater significance for Wales.
“I was genuinely stunned by it since I didn’t see it coming. Hard effort and pride in the challenging aspects of the game are the cornerstones of who we are and what we stand for. They gave us advice on how to play the less appealing aspects of the game,” Wales boss Rob Page said. “Not us, that. We scored early on and then had opportunities, but we lacked precision. We were way too expansive, finishing four transitions, which is not how you play against a team with that structure. Every opportunity they had, they took it, and they were clinical.”
“I’ll never doubt the players’ demeanor. As coaches, we accept accountability. The players have been outstanding the entire week. We’ll take this as a lesson, and we have a chance to make amends on Monday,” he added. “Maybe that was the smack we required. a small dose of reality-checking. Everyone was becoming overexcited and starry-eyed. Yes, we got off to a tremendous start in March, but poor teams are no longer an issue. In the 96th minute of tonight’s match, Turkey defeated Latvia.”
Only once before, in September 2011 against Slovakia (4-0), did Armenia score four goals away from home in a Euro qualifying match. James scored his first goal for Wales since October 2021 (against the Czech Republic), breaking a streak of 16 games without doing so. James has six goals for his nation, five of which have come in home games. On his eighth appearance for the national team, Zelarayan scored his first and second goals for Armenia. In fact, Zelarayan scored a brace and provided an assist in three of Armenia’s four goals throughout the contest.
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