Wales lost 4-2 in their key World Cup qualifying clash with Belgium last night, all but ending their automatic qualification hopes.

Joe Rodon gave the home side the perfect start after just eight minutes, as Wales flew out of the traps – a marked difference to their lacklustre opening 20 minutes at Wembley four days earlier.

However, Belgium responded like the side that had not lost in 45 qualifying matches over the course of a decade, initially through a controversial penalty, converted by Kevin de Bruyne, and then via a blistering counterattack from Jeremy Doku, finished expertly by Thomas Meunier.

In the second half, Wales pressed, harried, and hurried, but could not find an opening.

Doku remained the major threat, with captain Ben Davies – making his 100th Wales appearance – struggling to contain him. It was a mark of Doku’s excellence in the game that Craig Bellamy rotated through three different left backs throughout the second period, with Sorba Thomas deputising before Jay Dasilva saw out the dying stages.

With 15 minutes to go, Belgium won another penalty, this one far less controversial, with de Bruyne making no mistake once again.

Bellamy threw on attackers in search of a goal and more, with Brennan Johnson, Nathan Broadhead, and Kieffer Moore all making cameos. The latter two combined to give Wales hope in the 89th minute, with Moore bullying Brandon Mechele off the ball and feeding Broadhead to score past Courtois.

Sensing a potential snatched point, Wales poured forward and were almost immediately punished, as Timothy Castagne found an unmarked Leandro Trossard to stroke home and put the result beyond doubt.

Credit to Wales, they attacked from minute one, with Bellamy’s bold calls paying off – Mark Harris up front was tireless, Jordan James assured, and Ben Cabango solid for the most part.

However, with Belgium’s own attacking riches, leaving space in behind and on the flanks was always a risky plan, with Doku and Charles de Ketelaere finding dangerous pockets at will.

Wales are now four points behind Belgium with just two games two go. The aim now is to finish the group stages strongly – by beating Liechtenstein away and North Macedonia at home – before preparing themselves for yet another round of play-offs next March.

Sportin Wales’s coverage of Wales’s World Cup qualifying campaign is proudly sponsored by S4C. You can watch all of Wales’s matches this year for free on S4C and S4C Clic.

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