Wales 1-1 Turkey: Yusuf Yazici’s penalty kick equalizer negates Neco Williams’ early goal, sending the Dragons into the Euro 2024 play-offs following their Cardiff venue.
On minute seven, Neco Williams’ curling effort gave the hosts the lead.
After the break, Yusuf Yazici, a first-half substitute, equalized with a penalty.
It can inspire the players to continue playing because it’s all out against Everton – IAKO.
Wales had a thrilling 36-minute window to secure a spot in a major tournament for the third time in a row.
Neco Williams gave Rob Page’s team an early lead against Turkey, and with Croatia still tying 0-0 at home against Armenia, Wales was in second place and guaranteed a spot at Euro 2024 the following summer.
However, the bubble burst when the Cardiff crowd discovered that Ante Budimir had given Croatia the lead in the 43rd minute. Even though Wales performed admirably, the fire did not burn as brightly in the second half. Altay Bayindir, the goalkeeper for Manchester United, made crucial saves before Yusuf Yazici, a substitute, equalized with 20 minutes left from the penalty spot. Wales found that particularly frustrating, as they ought to have at least
Wales advances to the play-offs in March, while Turkey advances to the Finals in Germany automatically for Croatia. The winner of those games will play Poland or Estonia at a location to be announced. The first of those games will be played at home against Iceland, Finland, or Ukraine.
Wales are a different proposition at home against a Turkey team that seems unmotivated, which is why the 1-1 draw in Armenia was so disappointing. Besides, they had the ideal platform.
Page brought Nathan Broadhead into the starting lineup, and the Ipswich forward almost immediately made an impact when he cut in from the left and missed the mark.
Williams then gave Wales the lead in the seventh minute from a similar position. Following a deft move involving Jordan James and Harry Wilson, the Nottingham Forest player powered past a feeble challenge from Ferdi Kadioglu and placed his shot into the far corner. The Cardiff crowd erupted in cheers, and Page also lavished in celebration.
Wales were dominant, just as they had been for much of the victory over Croatia earlier this month. They moved sharper and were quicker to the ball than Turkey, and James, who is 19 years old, did a fantastic job of controlling the game in midfield.
Abdulkerim Bardakci was given a free kick after Brennan Johnson blocked him, and the Tottenham player was very unfortunate not to receive a penalty kick.
Referee Matej Jug remained unmoved four minutes after Samet Akaydin sent Johnson sprawling with a sliding challenge in the 26th minute, despite Akaydin pushing Johnson to the ground without making any contact with the ball.
Shortly after the half-hour mark, Turkey made two substitutions: Yusuf Yazici replaced Albdulkadir Omur, and Altay Bayindir took the place of the injured goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir.
Even though Wales had the upper hand, Turkey threatened when their standout player, Kerem Akturkoglu, volleyed wide and high from a respectable position at the far post. However, Wales remained a threat, and Bayindir performed admirably in stopping Johnson’s deflected shot. By then, Cardiff’s mood had soured a bit after it was revealed that Croatia had taken the lead over Armenia.
When Johnson tested him with an angled drive early in the second half, the United No. 2 made another stunning intervention.
