Wales vs Kazakhstan LIVE: Rabbi Matondo caps off impressive Welsh performance with first international goal
Wales 3-1 Kazakhstan: Craig Bellamy’s side got off to a perfect start to their qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup
Wales kicked off their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign with a testing but morale-boosting victory over Kazakhstan in Cardiff.
Craig Bellamy’s men opened the scoring with less than 10 minutes on the clock as Dan James latched onto a loose ball in the penalty area after a short corner play. He whipped a shot at goal and a deflection took it past the goalkeeper to send the Red Dragons in front.
Despite dominating play and possession they conceded an equaliser as Connor Roberts gave away a penalty for handling the ball in the area. Kazakhstan’s captain Askhat Tagybergen scored the spot kick but Karl Darlow almost kept it out only for the ball to spin back over the line.
The fans in the stadium were tense but Ben Davies eased their concerns with a headed goal less than two minutes into the second half and Rabbi Matondo scored his first international goal in the 90th minute to put the result beyond doubt.
Relive the updates from the Cardiff City Stadium below:
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
68 mins: Save! A trick free kick is rolled to Neco Williams by Liam Cullen.
Williams shoots low but the goalkeeper punches it away.
There’s a pinball in the box but the visitors hook it out of play for a corner.
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
66 mins: That’s a massive moment for Kazakhstan.
If that goal goes in then the match is effectively over but they’re still in this fight.
Wales are pushing them deeper and win themselves a free kick just outside the box,
Opportunity to score again here...
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
63 mins: Save! Dan James receives the ball on the right wing.
He drills a low pass into the area and picks out substitute Jordan James.
He shoots first time and hits it well only for Aleksandr Zarvtskiy to leap to the right and push it away!
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
59 mins: Kazakhstan have been good value tonight. They fly forward on a quick break with Samorodov driving the move.
He lays it off to Vorogovskiy who shoots from range only for Brooks to deflect the effort into the hands of Karl Darlow.
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
56 mins: Wales seem to have their confidence back but they’ll need to be wary.
A long ball down the left wing is collected by Samorodov who spins into the box and pulls it back to Chesnokov.
He shoots but scuffs it well wide of the target.
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
53 mins: Some slick one-touch passes almost see Brennan Johnson clear on the left side of the box but he can’t collect the final ball and Kazakhstan clear their lines.
Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan
50 mins: Wales deserve to be in front and they’ve started both halves quickly.
Craig Bellamy will know that things could change quickly so he’ll want a third goal to give his team a cushion.
GOAL! Wales 2-1 Kazakhstan (Ben Davies, 47')
What a start!
Wales win a corner with pretty much their first attack of the second half.
The corner is whipped over to the back post as goalkeeper Aleksandr Zarutskiy totally misreads the flight.
He flaps wide of the ball which drops on the head of Ben Davies who guides it home!
Second half! Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
Wales kick off the second half by sending the ball to Josh Sheehan who works it out to the right wing.
No changes made by Craig Bellamy.
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