Wales vs Belarus

Wales cannot afford a let-down in this World Cup qualifying round as they welcome Group E minnows Belarus to the Cardiff City Stadium.

Wales have come as closest as they’ve been in the past decade to reach their first World Cup finals since 1958, but they are not there yet. Though dethroning top-placed Belgium looks virtually impossible, Wales’ chances of locking down the coveted runner-up finish are bright as they have a game in hand over the second-placed Czech Republic, with whom they are currently level on points. Rob Page’s men have gone unbeaten in their last five World Cup qualifying matches (W3, D2) since losing 3-1 to Belgium in their Group E curtain-raiser in March. The ‘Dragons’ have shown two defensive faces in the ongoing qualifying campaign so far, conceding 2+ goals in three of their six outings while keeping a clean sheet in the other three.

Belarus looked to be on course of snapping a two-game losing H2H streak, but they turned a 2-1 HT lead into a 3-2 defeat in the reverse fixture back in March. Though they’ve lost five of their six historical meetings with Wales (W1), the ‘White Wings’ have often managed to keep it competitive, succumbing to a single-goal defeat on each occasion. However, Georgy Kondratyev’s men take the field on the back of seven consecutive losses, five of which saw them concede 2+ goals. Having failed to get on the scoresheet in four of their last five World Cup qualifying fixtures (L5), Belarus already look like a doomed outfit here. Adding to this sentiment, they’ve conceded an alarming average of 3.5 goals across their last six internationals held on foreign soil (D1, L5).