Armenia v Wales LIVE: Result and reaction from crucial Euro 2024 qualifier as Wales suffer huge blow with draw
Armenia 1-1 Wales: Euro 2024 qualification is taken out of Wales’s hands as they fail to find a winner in Yerevan
Wales suffered a huge blow in their penultimate Euro 2024 qualifier against Armenia, as a 1-1 draw in Yerevan took automatic qualification for the tournament out of their hands.
Rob Page’s side remain in the second automatic qualifying spot in Group D but will be leapfrogged by Croatia if they beat Latvia later this evening and if the Croats then do likewise against the Armenian on Tuesday they won’t be able to be caught by Wales, regardless of the result against Turkey in Cardiff at the same time.
Wales fell behind after just five minutes in Yerevan when they failed to clear a corner and Lucas Zelarayan brilliantly fired past Danny Ward but the visitors steadily gained a foothold and deservedly equalised in first-half injury time when Nair Tiknizyan headed into his own goal under pressure from Joe Rodon at a corner.
Yet the Dragons couldn’t find a winner in the second half and were fortunate not to lose the match as Vahan Bichakhchyan struck the underside of the bar and Ward made a couple of important saves with Armenia looking the side more likely to score. The dropped points now likely consign Wales to a play-off if they want to reach a third straight men’s European Championship finals.
Relive all the action with our live blog below:
Wales relying on a Croatia slip-up after only drawing in Armenia
Wales’ hopes of qualifying automatically for Euro 2024 were dented by a 1-1 draw in Armenia.
Lucas Zelarayan came back to haunt Wales again with a fifth-minute opener before a Nair Tiknizyan own goal in first-half stoppage time restored parity.
The draw helps neither side as far as joining already-qualified Turkey in the top two is concerned. Even beating Turkey in Cardiff on Tuesday would not be enough for Wales should Croatia win their final two fixtures.
If Croatia win those games then Wales will be involved in the March play-offs. Armenia’s chances of a top-two place are almost certainly over, barring a Croatia collapse.
Full report from Yerevan:
Wales relying on a Croatia slip-up after only drawing in Armenia
Armenia 1-1 Wales: Nair Tiknizyan’s own goal cancelled out Lucas Zelarayan’s opener but it was not enough for the visitors
Ben Davies and Ethan Ampadu give reaction to draw
Wales midfielder Ethan Ampadu on BBC Radio Wales: “The home game was down to us not playing great.
“We tried to bounce back and I thought we reacted well to going 1-0 down.
“We gave it everything. We showed a reaction and tried to dominate the game, but we couldn’t put the ball in the net.
“We are always good at bouncing back and on Tuesday we need to control what we can control and get the result we need and maybe we will get a little bit of luck along the way.”
Wales captain Ben Davies on S4C: “After conceding an early goal it was always going to be hard.
“It wasn’t a game where either side had a lot of chances or quality.
“We know what we have to do against Turkey and hopefully Latvia or Armenia can help us out (against Croatia).”
Armenia 1-1 Wales
Here are the two goals, both in the first half, from Yerevan.
FULL-TIME! Armenia 1-1 Wales
Automatic qualification is now out of Wales’s hands with that draw. If Croatia beat Latvia this evening and then do likewise against Armenia in Zagreb on Tuesday, they will take the second automatic qualification spot behind Turkey, condemning Wales to a play-off.
Wales fans will be desperately rooting for Latvia this evening and then will likely have their ears glued to the radio on Tuesday as they watch the Dragons take on Turkey in Cardiff but relying on the Armenians to do them a favour.
FULL-TIME! Armenia 1-1 Wales
All over in Yerevan! Wales can’t find the winner they so desperately need. A bad result for both teams.
Armenia 1-1 Wales
90+5 mins: Johnson gets down the right, takes a tumble and tries to appeal for a penalty but nothing in that. The ball rolls out for a goal-kick.
Armenia 1-1 Wales
90+5 mins: One last chance for Wales. Ward lumps it forward.
WIDE! Armenia 1-1 Wales
90+4 mins: What a chance for Armenia. Zelarayan jinks past a couple of players, dinks the ball in the box to Sevikyan who gets his shot away but can’t find the target. No composure as he goes over the bar.
Armenia 1-1 Wales
90+3 mins: Armenia try to take a quick free-kick on halfway but the ball’s int he wrong positon, so they’ll retake. The crowd don’t like that.
It’s the hosts who are looking more likely to find a winner in Yerevan as we enter the final two minutes of added time.
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