Euro 2024 qualifying: Wales humiliated 4-2 at home by Armeniaon June 16, 2023 at 8:45 pm

Wales suffer one of their most embarrassing and damaging defeats in recent memory as they lose 4-2 at home to Armenia in a chaotic Euro 2024 qualifier.

There were then gasps of disbelief as Grant-Leon Ranos was given the freedom of the Cardiff City Stadium to head the visitors – 71 places below Wales in the world rankings – into a first-half lead which was as deserved as it was shocking.

Wales had several chances to equalise but their wasteful finishing was punished after the break as Ranos hit a fine first-time shot from the edge of the area to send Armenia’s small contingent of travelling fans into raptures.

Harry Wilson pulled a goal back for Wales with a little under 20 minutes remaining, only for Zelarayan to curl in a superb second to restore Armenia’s two-goal advantage.

Any hopes Wales had of salvaging something from this game were then dealt another blow when striker Kieffer Moore was sent off for an off-the-ball clash with Armenian goalkeeper Ognjen Chancharevich.

That final calamity set the seal on a nightmarish evening for Wales, who squandered the chance to go top of Group D with previous leaders Croatia instead in Nations League action.

Rob Page and his Wales players must now try to recover from this humiliation in time for Monday’s trip to face new leaders Turkey, touted by many as their closest rivals for qualification behind group favourites Croatia.

Horror show from Wales

Wales were heavily criticised for last year’s World Cup, where their first appearance at the tournament since 1958 was spoiled by three dismal performances which saw them knocked out in the group stage.

A promising start to their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign in March – drawing in Croatia and beating Latvia at home – seemed to suggest Wales had purged themselves of their experience in Qatar, but this display against Armenia suggested otherwise.

It could, or more pertinently should, have been straightforward. Within 10 minutes, the pace of Johnson and James overwhelmed Armenia as they combined to put Wales ahead.

Instead of seizing control of the match from that point, however, Wales surrendered it.

Armenia’s first goal was a gem, Zelarayan’s sweet volley the kind that you could write off as just one of those things, a moment of individual class – even if Wales’ defenders were sloppy in tracking their runners.

But there was no justifying the second. Joe Rodon tried carrying the ball out of defence but lost it carelessly and then his colleagues did nothing to reduce the masses of space afforded Ranos to head in.

Wales did not learn their lesson. As players rushed forward in the desperate hope of getting themselves back into this game, they instead fell further behind as Ranos struck again.

The porous Welsh midfield practically invited their Armenian opponents into their penalty area, while the home defence was passive and, at times, statuesque.

But it is not only the players who should shoulder the responsibility for this horror show.

Just as he did against the United States and Iran at the World Cup, Page got this game horribly wrong.

Wales still have five games left to revive their hopes of qualifying for Euro 2024 but this result could have long-lasting and serious ramifications for Page and his players.

Armenia savour famous win

While Wales wallow in the humiliation of this result, Armenia can bask in the afterglow of one of their greatest victories.

They had lost nine of their previous 10 competitive matches, conceding 29 goals in the process and sliding down to 97 in the world rankings.

In Cardiff, however, they made a mockery of those statistics, harrying their opponents and counter-attacking astutely.

Their goals were no flukes. Indeed, they could have scored more and, apart from the occasional wayward shot, the visitors’ finishing was supreme.

This was also a moment to savour for their manager Oleksandr Petrakov, who had stood by the same touchline a year ago as his then Ukraine side were beaten by Wales in their World Cup play-off final.

The pain of that rain-soaked Sunday afternoon may now have eased for Petrakov, while the jubilation of World Cup qualification seems like a distant memory for Wales.