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Wales secured a tight 1-0 victory against underdogs Liechtenstein to maintain their hopes of World Cup finals progress.

Jordan James scored his maiden international strike for Wales from close range after Liechtenstein’s group of full-time players, office workers and part-timers had resisted for the majority of the match. The scorer wheeled away in elation with his clear emotion echoed by the large contingent of Welsh followers packed into multiple stands of the Rheinpark Stadion in Vaduz.

Soon afterwards, yet, James was shown a yellow card and a further booking for his midfield partner means the two players are ruled out for the upcoming crunch tie with North Macedonia due to disciplinary issues.

The Cardiff City Stadium contest is a clash the Welsh team have to secure victory in to move above their rivals and secure a improved seeding in the playoffs in next spring.

Bellamy had an unfamiliar view from the dugout, the head coach serving a technical area prohibition after being shown a further caution in the qualifiers earlier.

The manager's assistant his assistant assumed duties in the coaching zone and four of Wales’s starters – James, Ampadu, Rodon, Neco Williams – were one caution from from missing the final qualifier. Both James and Ampadu received cautions in moments that might hamper Wales.

Their opponents, situated among the lowest-ranked in global rankings, had been goalless in their six qualifying defeats and conceded twenty-three goals at an rate of nearly four per game.

The visitors as expected dominated possession as Liechtenstein employed a compact shape and got bodies behind the ball.

Their opponent's target remained unthreatened until Broadhead pressing caused a mistake and James saw his shot from the edge of the box saved by Benjamin Büchel.

A similar move created another chance, Jordan finding Broadhead this time with a well-weighted delivery over the top.

The attacker's excellent first touch took him past Büchel but the Wrexham striker was unable to score from a narrow position.

Wales believed they'd taken the lead after 26 minutes when Jordan James nodded a high Thomas set-piece back into a packed goal area.

Büchel was flustered by Dylan Lawlor and Joe Rodon, and his poor clearance landed with Broadhead who finished powerfully. But Welsh celebrations were cut short when the referee was sent to the pitchside monitor and determined that at least one of the Wales centre-halves was in an offside position from James’s initial touch.

Wales increased the pressure after the break and Thomas provided a cross to the far post which James hit the crossbar.

Neco Williams then missed with a header from within the six-yard box as it started to seem like one of those nights for the Welsh side.

However, with the match having ticked into its 61st minute, Neco Williams played a shrewd assist for his teammate to run past the home defence.

Daniel James bypassed the goalkeeper with a excellent cross along the six-yard box, and his teammate Jordan James had the simple job of easing Welsh tension.