Craig Bellamy felt penalty miss was justice served in Wales’ draw with Turkey

Phil Blanche, PA, Kayseri

Craig Bellamy felt justice was served when Turkey forward Kerem Akturkoglu struck his 89th-minute penalty against a post and Wales escaped with a Nations League draw.

Turkey had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock and win the Kayseri clash after Yunus Akgun fell over Neco Williams’ outstretched leg.

Television replays appeared to show Williams had got a faint touch on the ball but Spanish referee Juan Martinez Munuera had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Wales assistant coach Piet Cremers was sent off in the aftermath of the penalty decision as tempers boiled over on the touchline.

“I’m not sure that was a penalty,” Bellamy said after the 0-0 stalemate had extended his unbeaten start as Wales manager to five games.

“Just look at it. Did he go from behind? No, it was from the side. Did he touch the ball? Yes.

“VAR? Did I believe they would overturn it or get the referee to look at it? No. UEFA are very good at not imposing themselves on it.

“I felt that was justice (the penalty miss). I don’t believe Turkey deserved to win it that way.

“Maybe different parts of the game (Turkey deserved to win), yeah. I don’t believe that was a penalty.”

Wales had to ride their luck at times as Turkey, Euro 2024 quarter-finalists in the summer, dominated territory, possession and scoring opportunities before a raucous crowd at the Kadir Has Stadium.

But Wales also had their opportunities as Harry Wilson hit a post in the first half, just moments after Jordan James saw his sweetly-struck effort ruled out for offside.

Bellamy said: “My mentality is to win. Now, we would have liked to have controlled the game a lot better.

“I felt in transition, as soon as we won the ball, we thought we could score. Sometimes maybe the best decision would have been to keep the ball longer to get a rest, have a foothold in the game.

“I felt it (balance of play) was a lot more in their favour this time. The roles were reversed last game (when Turkey drew 0-0 in Cardiff in September).”

The draw leaves Wales in second place in Group B4 heading into the final round of fixtures on Tuesday.

Wales will secure at least a Nations League play-off place in March by avoiding defeat at home to Iceland while knowing victory would secure top spot and promotion to League A should Turkey lose in Montenegro.

“Hard-fought game… a tough test”

Craig Bellamy | 🇹🇷 o-o 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿@S4C | #NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/DbkN9L6FzD

— Sgorio ⚽️ (@sgorio) November 16, 2024

Should they lose to Iceland, they would finish third in the group and be pitched into a relegation play-off against a League C runner-up.

Bellamy said: “I believe we’re a Group A team, I definitely believe Turkey are a Group A team as well.

“These are the games we want, the teams we want to compete against all the time. By that, surely we’re going to keep improving all the time.

“I learned a lot (about the team). You can tell by my manner I want to dominate everything and we didn’t dominate.

“Is it realistic to dominate a team like Turkey in this present moment? Probably not but I’m very greedy. I’d like more.”