Liechtenstein vs Wales: How Daniel Farke’s four stars performed away from Leeds United
Daniel Farke would have kept one eye on Wales’ win against Liechtenstein as multiple of his Leeds United stars were on show.
Dan James has recently returned from injury for the Whites, with just 288 minutes of Premier League football to his name so far this season, but both Joe Rodon and Ethan Ampadu have been in fine form.
Karl Darlow was given a string of starts at Elland Road due to Lucas Perri’s frustrating injury, but he has been placed back on the bench in recent weeks following the return of the first-choice shot-stopper.
Despite such a difference in minutes on the pitch, all four were called up to the Wales team for the international break, and this is how they fared against Liechtenstein on Saturday, 15 November.
Karl Darlow
An extremely quiet night for the goalkeeper, who viewed most of the game from his own penalty area, while his teammates pushed into the final third for most of the 90 minutes.
He remained calm when the centre-backs felt the need to go all the way home, allowing Wales to take a breather before trying to break down the door again. It was a pretty simple night for Darlow.
Joe Rodon
Rodon was adjudged to be offside as Wales’ opening goal was ruled out for offside, but it was a rather controversial decision after not actually having an impact on the Liechtenstein goalkeeper.
Craig Bellamy‘s side are likely to be heading for the World Cup play-off spots, and if they are to be part of the competition next year, Rodon will need to be at his very best for Wales.
Other than the first-half frustration, the centre-back was incredibly strong, perfect with his passing, and rarely put a foot wrong for the Red Dragons.
Ethan Ampadu
Ampadu was given the captain’s armband due to Ben Davies‘ withdrawal from the squad, and it was certainly the right decision from Bellamy as Wales needed a leading figure.
It would have been really easy for the players to lose their heads due to several missed chances, but thanks to the Leeds United star remaining calm in the centre of the pitch, so did his teammates.
Liechtenstein really struggled to deal with the midfielder’s strength, never taking the ball off him, all while popping up at both ends of the pitch to ensure momentum didn’t drop for Wales.
Dan James
Shortly after blasting a shot against the base of the post, James fired a ball across the six-yard box, with Jordan James unable to miss to give Wales the lead. Phew.
It was not the easiest of nights for the pacey winger, who loves to burst in behind a defence, but he took his chance when it was needed most, creating the easiest opportunity of the entire game.