Wales 1-0 Montenegro: Harry Wilson penalty secures narrow Nations League victory as Craig Bellamy extends unbeaten start

Harry Wilson maintained his scoring streak for Wales as a 1-0 Nations League win over Montenegro saw manager Craig Bellamy create Welsh football history.

Bellamy became the first Wales manager to be unbeaten in his first four games as his side stayed two points behind Group B4 leaders Turkey, 4-2 winners in Iceland.

Wilson has found himself a bit-part player at Fulham this season, managing only 36 minutes in the Premier League.

But the 27-year-old’s influence has steadily grown on the Wales set-up, and he was on target again after scoring previously against Montenegro and Iceland.

By winning and dispatching a 36th-minute penalty, Wilson became the first Welshman to score in three successive games for his country since Gareth Bale at Euro 2016.

How understrength Wales stayed on track for promotion

Wales were weakened by injury and suspension with banned pair Brennan Johnson and Jordan James joining injured trio Aaron Ramsey, Ethan Ampadu and Daniel James on the sidelines.

Bellamy had promised to make changes with the short turnaround in games and the final whistle in Reykjavik being less than 72 hours earlier, and was as good as his word.

Karl Darlow replaced Danny Ward in goal and Ben Cabango, David Brooks, Liam Cullen, Mark Harris, Josh Sheehan and Wes Burns were also promoted from the bench as Bellamy made seven alterations.

That meant there was still no starting spot for Joe Allen, who had reversed his decision in February 2023 to retire from international football and join this Wales camp.

The two teams had been involved in a chaotic fixture five weeks ago when Wales scored twice in the first three minutes to win 2-1 amid a Niksic deluge that led to events bordering on farce.

Montenegro – 74th in the world rankings and 45 places below Wales – showed enough defiance to suggest they might be an awkward proposition in Cardiff, despite failing to pick up any points from their opening three games.

But not withstanding an unfamiliar line-up, Wales dominated the first period and should have comfortably led by more than Wilson’s spot-kick.

The 27,326-strong crowd was slow to find its voice, but Burns should have celebrated his first Wales goal after Wilson’s delicious ball to the far post saw him head wide.

Brooks, who had started brightly despite a lack of game time at Bournemouth, fired low at Igor Nikic and the Montenegro goalkeeper excelled to deny Wilson.

Wales’ chances began to come and go at regular intervals: Harris failed to reach Neco Williams’ cross with the goal at his mercy, Cullen beat Nikic to a through ball but lifted over, and Brooks’ 25-yard effort was pushed aside.

Growing frustration finally ended when Wales worked a short corner routine and Wilson was felled by Vladimir Jovovic just inside the box.

Slovakian referee Filip Glova took his time to point to the spot, perhaps getting a nudge from his assistant, and Wilson calmly sent Nikic the wrong way to put Wales ahead.

Wilson was inches away from another after being set up by Harris and Montenegro sent on their veteran talisman Stevan Jovetic, once of Inter Milan and Manchester City, for the second half.

Jovetic’s arrival stirred Montenegro as fellow substitute Andrija Radulovic shook the crossbar from distance, and Allen arrived for his 75th cap to keep the back door closed.

Nathan Broadhead fluffed an opportunity after coming off the bench and Williams saw a late free-kick saved, but Wales avoided the second-half concerns suffered during this campaign.

Bellamy: We controlled the tempo

Wales boss Craig Bellamy told S4C:

“Being able to control the tempo of the second-half. We still need improvement on it as obviously you get breaks when you’re winning 1-0 and feel you can score with every opportunity but they became dangerous on the counter.

“We controlled the tempo of the game but I was pleased by how we didn’t get involved in a transitional game. I felt we were able to control it better than we have recently.

“There were a lot of changes and this Nations League is so good as it allows you to play players as they need game time. I think we will need 20-plus players to have a real go at qualifying for a major tournament. I think it will help us in the long run.

“I’m not speaking as an experienced manager, but I get the feeling rotating and giving players opportunities like today will be very beneficial.”

What’s next?

Wales visit Turkey on Saturday 16 November as their Nations League campaign continues.