Finland 0-1 Wales: Kieffer Moore’s final goal gives Ryan Giggs’ men a dream start to the Nations League

Kieffer Moore’s third international goal ensured that Wales began their 2020/21 Nations League campaign with a close win over Finland at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium.

The visitors got off to a good start in the Finnish capital and saw Moore score a goal.

However, the hosts had opportunities of their own, notably through Leo Vaisanen, who hit the post.

But Cardiff City striker Moore pushed Daniel James’s center home at the end to give Wales a dream start to their Nations League campaign.

With Joe Allen unavailable due to injury, Ryan Giggs handed Dylan Levitt his international debut, and the Manchester United youngster became the 16th player to bow in Wales with the current head coach.

Joe Morrell accompanied him into the center of the park, which meant that Ethan Ampadu stood alongside Tom Lockyer at the heart of the defense.

Jonny Williams was deployed in an attacking position in the absence of Aaron Ramsey, with captain Gareth Bale and James as the other two attackers behind only forward Moore.

Wales entered the match 35 places ahead of Markku Kanerva’s team in the FIFA rankings, and although they had not appeared since qualifying for Euro 2020 by beating Hungary 2-0 in November last year, they entered the game undefeated. in their last six games. .

And Giggs’ men thought they were off to a dream start when Ben Davies sent James free down the left wing before Moore finished off with a perfect 22-year-old cross, though referee Daniel Siebert penalized the leader for what appeared to be . a soft foul.

That didn’t put off the visitors who continued to look threatening from the start, with James’ deflected shot being cut off by Lukas Hradecky.

Teemu Pukki, who scored 11 goals in 38 appearances in all competitions for Norwich City last season, saw his shot go wide in what was Finland’s first start in 15 minutes.

But Wales nearly hit them on the counter shortly after when James fed Bale from the right, though the Real Madrid star’s curling effort was diverted.

Finland had the ball in the net midway through the first half when Joni Kauko shot past Wayne Hennessey, though Joel Pohjanpalo was flagged offside in preparation for the shot.

Jonny Williams continued to cause trouble for the hosts, and Finland captain Tim Sparv was booked for a foul on the Charlton Athletic man, and Bale’s subsequent free kick was easily cleared.

Morrell received a yellow card for a steadfast challenge on Glen Kamara shortly after, and the scoreboard remained level at halftime after a difficult first-half finish.

Bale, who started just three of Real Madrid’s 14 post-closing matches, was withdrawn at halftime, with Harry Wilson entering for the second half.

But it was the home team that started the brighter of the two sides, and they should have been ahead in the 51st minute, although Vaisanen inexplicably fired his shot at the post from about three meters away.

Liverpool youth Neco Williams, who before the game stated that he had no desire to play for England amid the interest of the Three Lions, received his Welsh debut with 30 minutes to go, and Jonny Williams was the man who started the way.

The Red Dragons struggled to create chances, although they seemed relatively comfortable when it came to dealing with things in their own half, as the game seemed destined to end scoreless.

But with 10 minutes remaining on the clock, James crossed from the left flank, and Moore was given the simple task of scoring his third international goal to put Wales ahead.

Neco Williams launched an open volley five minutes from time before Finland applied some pressure at the end. Ben Cabango was the third rookie of the night, with the Swansea City man replacing James in death.

And Wales kept all three points, placing them first in group four in League B ahead of their meeting with Bulgaria, which tied with the Republic of Ireland, at Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Finland: Hradecky; Uronen, Vaisanen, Ojala, O’Shaughnessy; Kauko (Jensen 70), Sparv (C) (Lam 76), Kamara, Niskanen (Soiri 86); Pohjanpalo, Pukki.

Unused subs: Joronen, Jaakkola, Granlund, Hostikka, Taylor, Vaisanen, Alho, Karajalainen, Hamalainen.

Yellow cards: Sparv 26, Pukki 48, Vaisanen 72

Welsh: Hennessey; C Roberts, Ampadu, Lockyer, B Davies (C); Levitt, Morrell; Bale (C) (Wilson 46), J Williams (N Williams 60), James (Cabango 90 + 1); Moore.

Unused subs: Ward, A Davies, Gunter, J Lawrence, Robson-Kanu, Matondo, Smith, Woodburn, Vaulks.

Yellow Cards: Morrell 36, C Roberts 69, Wilson 86, Moore 90 + 2

Target: Moore 80

Referee: Daniel Siebert

How the match unfolded: