Belgium vs Wales, 2022 World Cup Qualifying - UEFA, Group Stage
· FIFA World Cup Qualifying - UEFABelgium come from behind to beat Wales 3-1
Belgium shrugged off an early scare to see off Wales 3-1 and make a winning start to their World Cup qualifying campaign on Wednesday.
Match Commentary
- 0': Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
- 0': First Half begins.
- 2': Offside, Belgium. Toby Alderweireld tries a through ball, but Dries Mertens is caught offside.
- 4': Foul by Toby Alderweireld (Belgium).
- 4': Harry Wilson (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 8': Substitution, Wales. Joe Morrell replaces Joe Allen because of an injury.
- 10': Goal! Belgium 0, Wales 1. Harry Wilson (Wales) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Gareth Bale with a through ball.
- 12': Ethan Ampadu (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 12': Foul by Thomas Meunier (Belgium).
- 15': Attempt blocked. Romelu Lukaku (Belgium) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne.
- 16': Attempt blocked. Youri Tielemans (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
- 16': Corner, Belgium. Conceded by James Lawrence.
- 17': Attempt missed. Romelu Lukaku (Belgium) left footed shot from very close range is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne with a cross following a corner.
- 19': Foul by Leander Dendoncker (Belgium).
- 19': Harry Wilson (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 22': Goal! Belgium 1, Wales 1. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Thorgan Hazard.
- 25': Corner, Belgium. Conceded by Joe Rodon.
- 25': Attempt missed. Toby Alderweireld (Belgium) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne with a cross following a corner.
- 26': Foul by Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium).
- 26': Neco Williams (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 28': Goal! Belgium 2, Wales 1. Thorgan Hazard (Belgium) header from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Thomas Meunier with a cross.
- 32': Attempt missed. Thorgan Hazard (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Romelu Lukaku.
- 34': Foul by Leander Dendoncker (Belgium).
- 34': Harry Wilson (Wales) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 38': Attempt missed. Dries Mertens (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Romelu Lukaku.
- 42': Daniel James (Wales) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 42': Foul by Toby Alderweireld (Belgium).
- 45': Offside, Belgium. Toby Alderweireld tries a through ball, but Thomas Meunier is caught offside.
- 45'+2': First Half ends, Belgium 2, Wales 1.
- 45': Second Half begins Belgium 2, Wales 1.
- 45': Substitution, Belgium. Jason Denayer replaces Thomas Vermaelen.
- 48': Attempt missed. Gareth Bale (Wales) left footed shot from the right side of the six yard box misses to the right. Assisted by Neco Williams.
- 51': Foul by Jason Denayer (Belgium).
- 51': Joe Morrell (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 56': Connor Roberts (Wales) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 56': Foul by Thorgan Hazard (Belgium).
- 56': Attempt missed. Daniel James (Wales) right footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Neco Williams.
- 57': Hand ball by Thomas Meunier (Belgium).
- 58': Attempt missed. Daniel James (Wales) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Joe Morrell.
- 59': Corner, Belgium. Conceded by James Lawrence.
- 61': Foul by Thomas Meunier (Belgium).
- 61': Gareth Bale (Wales) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 65': Foul by Gareth Bale (Wales).
- 65': Youri Tielemans (Belgium) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 66': Attempt blocked. Romelu Lukaku (Belgium) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
- 66': Attempt missed. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.
- 66': Substitution, Wales. Tyler Roberts replaces Harry Wilson.
- 70': Offside, Belgium. Kevin De Bruyne tries a through ball, but Romelu Lukaku is caught offside.
- 71': Penalty Belgium. Dries Mertens draws a foul in the penalty area.
- 71': Penalty conceded by Chris Mepham (Wales) after a foul in the penalty area.
- 73': Goal! Belgium 3, Wales 1. Romelu Lukaku (Belgium) converts the penalty with a left footed shot to the bottom right corner.
- 75': Connor Roberts (Wales) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 75': Foul by Thorgan Hazard (Belgium).
- 75': Thorgan Hazard (Belgium) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 79': Corner, Belgium. Conceded by Ethan Ampadu.
- 84': Substitution, Belgium. Timothy Castagne replaces Thorgan Hazard.
- 84': Substitution, Wales. Kieffer Moore replaces Gareth Bale.
- 85': Corner, Wales. Conceded by Thomas Meunier.
- 86': Foul by Kieffer Moore (Wales).
- 86': Thibaut Courtois (Belgium) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 88': Attempt saved. Dries Mertens (Belgium) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne.
- 90'+2': Foul by Thomas Meunier (Belgium).
- 90'+2': Neco Williams (Wales) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 90'+2': Substitution, Belgium. Leandro Trossard replaces Dries Mertens.
- 90'+3': Second Half ends, Belgium 3, Wales 1.
- 0': Match ends, Belgium 3, Wales 1.
Statistics
 WAL |
BEL |
|
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Fouls | 12 |
| 0 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 0 | Offsides | 3 |
| 1 | Corner Kicks | 4 |
| 1 | Saves | 0 |
| 25.3 | Possession | 74.7 |
| 4 | SHOTS | 12 |
| 1 | ON GOAL | 4 |
| 0.3 | On Target % | 0.3 |
| 0 | Penalty Goals | 1 |
| 0 | Penalty Kicks Taken | 1 |
| 221 | Accurate Passes | 807 |
| 298 | Passes | 897 |
| 0.7 | Pass Completion % | 0.9 |
| 3 | Accurate Crosses | 4 |
| 9 | Crosses | 13 |
| 0.3 | Cross % | 0.3 |
| 60 | Long Balls | 46 |
| 22 | Accurate Long Balls | 25 |
| 0.4 | Long Balls % | 0.5 |
| 0 | Blocked Shots | 3 |
| 11 | Effective Tackles | 7 |
| 13 | Tackles | 9 |
| 0.8 | Tackle % | 0.8 |
| 25 | Interceptions | 4 |
| 19 | Effective Clearances | 7 |
| 19 | Clearances | 7 |
Game Information
Competition: FIFA World Cup Qualifying - UEFA
Venue: King Power at Den Dreef Stadion
Location: Leuven, Belgium
Venue: King Power at Den Dreef Stadion
Location: Leuven, Belgium
WCQ - UEFA Standings
| # | TEAM | GP | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bulgaria | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Georgia | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Spain | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Turkey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Line-Ups
Belgium (3-4-2-1)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Thibaut Courtois (GK) |
| 3 | Thomas Vermaelen |
| 5 | Jan Vertonghen |
| 2 | Toby Alderweireld |
| 6 | Leander Dendoncker |
| 8 | Youri Tielemans |
| 10 | Thorgan Hazard |
| 15 | Thomas Meunier |
| 9 | Romelu Lukaku |
| 14 | Dries Mertens |
| 7 | Kevin De Bruyne |
Wales (3-4-3)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 12 | Danny Ward (GK) |
| 6 | Joe Rodon |
| 4 | Jamie Lawrence |
| 22 | Chris Mepham |
| 15 | Ethan Ampadu |
| 7 | Joe Allen |
| 3 | Neco Williams |
| 14 | Connor Roberts |
| 10 | Harry Wilson |
| 20 | Daniel James |
| 11 | Gareth Bale |
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