England had hoped to avoid the play-offs, but a difficult qualifying-group draw placed them alongside reigning world champions Spain. Nevertheless, Wiegman’s team are well positioned to advance. With a valuable advantage from the opening leg, they are strong favourites against Greece, who are 55 places lower in the Fifa world rankings. England also won both […]
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Wales will be missing nine established squad members as they continue their campaign to qualify for the World Cup for the first time. Olivia Clark, Poppy Soper, Rhiannon Roberts, Hayley Ladd, Ella Powell, Laura Hughes, Mia Ross, Ffion Morgan and Ceri Holland are all unavailable because of injuries. Holland has been one of Wales’ key […]
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Wales remain third going into the final round of fixtures after beating Norway and losing to Portugal on Sunday, with head-to-head records used to separate teams in the competition. Across the last three Nations League editions, sides finishing at the bottom of a League A group collected an average of 2.92 points from six matches. […]
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International teams have usually contested six matches during three separate breaks in September, October and November, with two fixtures played in each window. This year, however, the September and October international periods were combined for the first time. Wales found the revised schedule even more difficult because of numerous injuries. Karl Darlow, Joe Rodon, Dylan […]
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Wales are eager to build momentum, but just days after arguably the finest result of Craig Bellamy’s two-year tenure, an exhausting international break concluded on a disappointing note. There was at least some consolation when Bellamy learned that Portugal’s comeback win against Norway left Wales third in Nations League A4 for the next six weeks […]
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More than the outcome itself, it was Wales’ display that seemed to restore the supporters’ confidence and repair their bond with the head coach. Speaking on S4C, Bellamy said Oscar Bobb’s opening goal after 11 minutes could have caused the crowd to turn against the team in Wales’ first home fixture since reports linking him […]
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Craig Bellamy has urged Wales to deliver a better performance against Norway on Thursday after admitting he barely recognised his team during their loss to Denmark. He also pointed to Norway’s progress to the World Cup quarter-finals as evidence of their quality. Wales welcome Norway to Cardiff as they seek their first victory since last […]
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Wales received praise for their display, but Craig Bellamy believes there is still room for improvement after acknowledging how hard his team had to battle during a tight 1-0 loss in Portugal. A deflected attempt from Joao Felix secured the win for the home team in Lisbon, while a Cristiano Ronaldo strike was disallowed following […]
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Another dramatic night in Cristiano Ronaldo’s remarkable career unfolded almost like a comic book. His number appeared on the fourth official’s board in the 67th minute, prompting him to remove the captain’s armband before leaving the field to widespread applause, apart from the travelling Wales fans. Referee Donatas Rumsas urged him to make a quicker […]
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UK prime minister Andy Burnham has criticised what he described as the unfair treatment of football supporters who are prohibited from drinking alcohol while watching matches from the stands, suggesting that the legislation could be revised. Margaret Thatcher’s government introduced the restriction quickly in 1985 as part of an effort to tackle football-related violence, which […]
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