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The Welsh side claimed a narrow 1-0 win against international minnows Liechtenstein to keep alive their chances of World Cup progress.

The young midfielder notched his first goal for Wales from close range after the home side's group of professionals, amateurs and part-timers had defended for the majority of the match. The scorer ran off in elation with his obvious relief shared by the 3,000 Wales supporters occupying most sections of the venue in Vaduz.

Shortly after, however, James was cautioned and a further late caution for Ethan Ampadu resulted in the pair are unavailable for Tuesday’s decisive game with North Macedonia through disciplinary issues.

That Cardiff City Stadium match is a encounter Wales have to secure victory in to overtake their rivals and guarantee a better seeding in the playoffs in next spring.

The Wales manager had an unfamiliar vantage point from the dugout, the head coach serving a sideline suspension after receiving a second yellow card in the competition last month.

Bellamy’s deputy his assistant assumed duties in the dugout and multiple first-teamers – Jordan James, Ethan Ampadu, Joe Rodon, Neco Williams – were a booking away from being absent for the final qualifier. Two of them received cautions in situations that could really hurt their team.

Their opponents, placed near the bottom in global rankings, had been goalless in their previous six losses and let in twenty-three goals at an rate of almost four per fixture.

The visitors predictably dominated possession as Liechtenstein adopted a deep defensive line and defended in numbers.

The home goal remained unthreatened until Nathan Broadhead chasing down caused a mistake and James saw his effort from the edge of the box saved by the goalkeeper.

The same combination crafted an opportunity, James locating his teammate on this occasion with a well-weighted ball into space.

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

Wales felt they taken the lead after the opening period when Jordan James directed a high Thomas set-piece back into a packed goal area.

Büchel was under pressure by Dylan Lawlor and Joe Rodon, and his feeble attempt landed with Broadhead who drove home emphatically. But Wales' joy were curtailed when the official was instructed to the video review system and determined that one or more of the Welsh defenders was in an offside from Jordan's header.

Wales raised the tempo after the break and Thomas delivered a ball to the far post which Daniel James struck the woodwork.

Neco Williams then missed with a header from inside the six-yard box as it began to look like a difficult match for the Welsh side.

But, with the game having reached its second half, Neco Williams played a shrewd through ball for his teammate to break behind the opposition backline.

James beat the goalkeeper with a excellent ball along the six-yard box, and his namesake Jordan James had the straightforward job of relieving Welsh anxiety.