October 14, (THEWILL) — Wales suffered a damaging 4-2 loss to Belgium at Cardiff City Stadium on Monday night, dealing a significant setback to their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign. Victory would have given Craig Bellamy’s side the chance to overtake Belgium at the summit of Group J.
Joe Rodon provided the perfect opening when he headed in from a Sorba Thomas corner after eight minutes. Yet the lead lasted barely 10 minutes before Kevin De Bruyne equalised from the penalty spot following Ethan Ampadu’s handball. Thomas Meunier then fired Belgium ahead in the 24th minute after Jeremy Doku’s cut-back, following a fine diagonal pass from Leandro Trossard.
De Bruyne added his second penalty just after half-time when Jordan James was penalised for handball, giving the visitors a 3-1 advantage. Nathan Broadhead pulled one back in the 89th minute with a fierce strike past Thibaut Courtois, briefly reigniting Welsh hopes.
However, Belgium responded immediately through a rapid counter-attack finished by Trossard, ensuring the points returned to the visitors. The margin reflected Belgium’s quality in attack, with Doku and Trossard causing persistent problems for the Welsh defence.
The result leaves Wales third in the group, sitting four points behind Belgium and three adrift of second-placed North Macedonia. Bellamy’s team now face an uphill battle to qualify automatically for the World Cup finals.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
