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:
HT Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
Half-time! Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
45+4 mins: The whistle goes to end the first half and Wales are locked into a battle in Cardiff.
Things haven’t totally gone their way despite dominating most of the half.
Dan James’ goal was cancelled out and the Welsh will need to score again to secure a win.
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
45 mins: Four minutes of added time to play in the first half.
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
42 mins: No red card!
Samorodov is shown a yellow card for the dangerous tackle.
A wise decision I think, there was no malicious intent in the challenge and the match continues with 11 vs 11.
Wales take their free kick. It’s a dainty move that sets up Brooks for a shot but he curls the effort high and wide.
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
40 mins: Hold up. There’s a VAR check here for a potential red card.
The incident is from Maksim Samorodov sticking his leg onto the knee of Connor Roberts.
Roberts was the one to pass the ball to Sheehan before he was fouled.
The referee is looking at it on the monitor...
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
39 mins: Brennan Johnson goes down in the box but the referee is unmoved.
The ball comes out to Josh Sheehan who is brought down and wins a free kick in a dangerous area.
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
38 mins: Kazakhstan have lost their last eight away games.
They are level with Wales with half-time approaching quickly.
It’ll be a strong 45 minutes for the visitors if they get to the break on level terms.
Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan
35 mins: Kazakhstan will play the same way. Lots of men defending closing down the space and trying to limit where Wales can operate.
Can Wales get themselves back in front?
Craig Bellamy isn’t best pleased on the sidelines by the penalty decision.
GOAL! Wales 1-1 Kazakhstan (Askhat Tagybergen, 32')
Askhat Tagybergen steps up for the visitors.
The captain of the team. He shoots and it’s a poor penalty.
Karl Darlow dives to the right but manages to get a good chunk of the ball.
It spins and rolls back over the line!
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