Euro 2024 qualifiers: Wales hopes hit with draw in Armenia

Wales needed to beat Armenia, and Turkey next week, to guarantee qualification, but its fate is now out of its hands. It has 11 points from seven games, five behind group leader Turkey.

Wales’ Joe Rodon reacts after the Euro 2024 group D qualifying soccer match between Armenia and Wales at the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium. | Photo Credit: AP / Hakob Berberyan

Wales’ hopes of qualifying automatically for Euro 24 suffered a potentially critical blow as it was held to a 1-1 draw in its penultimate Group D match on Saturday.

It suffered a terrible start when the home side’s Lucas Zelarayan cut in and fired a shot into the bottom corner after five minutes.

Wales struggled to gain control but had a huge stroke of luck in first-half stoppage time when a long throw-in by Connor Roberts went in off the head of Armenia’s Nair Tiknizyan.

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A wide-open second half failed to separate the sides with Armenia’s Vahan Bichakhchyan denied by the crossbar and the hosts also wasting several other opportunities.

Wales needed to beat Armenia, and Turkey next week, to guarantee qualification, but its fate is now out of its hands. It has 11 points from seven games, five behind group leader Turkey, but Croatia will go into second place if it beat Latvia later on Saturday.