Dai (@colemans_dream) looks back at a troubled night in Samsun.
Istanbul is a brilliant city. Chaotic. Energetic. Energy sapping. Beautiful. Messy. Sprawling. It consumes your senses. Samsun on the other hand is a slightly odd one road in, one round out city. New buildings and old stand side by side surrounded by areas of beauty which aren’t quite utilised. And it’s a pain to get around. I felt the two teams were summed up by their surroundings in the humid evening air on Monday night.
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Turkey were energetic as they worked so hard to press Welsh players on the ball. It didn’t always succeed but when it did they looked a very positive side. Whilst Wales had positive moments, they were undermined by bad decisions. They contained the Turks rather than exploited them. Whilst Turkey looked like they would score, Wales seemed unlikely to strike a telling blow. These things combined led to one inevitable outcome. Whilst it wasn’t in the manner of the abject defeat to Armenia, Wales’ weaknesses were no less exposed.
Wales began the game with Morrell effectively replacing the suspended Moore, and Ben Davies’ foray into fatherhood meant Neco Williams started on the left of the back 4. Perhaps some lessons had been learned then, as Page switched his formation and tried to make us more solid. The opening exchanges were balanced and whilst Wales didn’t threaten too much the ball was retained well and Turkey were managed well with the occasional long shot barely making an impact.
The deadlock was initially broken after a ball in behind Neco Williams was swept across and turned into the Welsh net by a sprawling Chris Mepham. Thankfully, VAR intervened and disallowed the goal for offside. The warning signs were there though, as they were on Friday night. Wales were gettable in the fullback areas. With that said, Cymru looked solid for the most part and possessed some attacking threat, often moving the ball well out from the back.
That threat was however nullified by Joe Morrell and the referee. A needless high studs-up lunge around the thigh area sent Joe to an early bath. It was the right call by the referee who got very little else right all night. Totally inconsistent on small niggling fouls and booking people needlessly. At one point he dragged Ampadu out of his way by his collar. Awful refereeing. Clearly, he wanted his moment in the limelight. Regardless, our attempt to sit in and nick a goal on the break looked void all of a sudden. We entered survival mode.
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Whilst Wales had created one or two moments, set plays looked our best avenue to success. A free kick from the left-hand side looping just over the bar and a Harry Wilson free kick striking the wall. Realistically though, the Turkish defence had a night off, especially with Moore being absent but the sending off killed any limited thoughts of attack. Half time with Turkey on top, but no goals for either side.
As the second half rolled around, Page reacted. Cabango brought in for the ailing Brennan Johnson who’d looked uncomfortable for a while having gone down following a shot on the right-hand side. The message was clear though – Hang on for dear life and don’t lose.
A brief moment of hope we presented to us however with a dynamic run from Daniel James culminating in him being fouled. Harry Wilson conjured up another wicked free kick, destined for the top corner. Sadly, the Turkish keeper was up to the task and turned the beautifully struck ball around the post.
Turkey grew and grew into the game at this point. Another VAR intervention chalked off another Turkey goal from a rebound after an attacking handball and it looked to be our night. This logic was halted and then revitalised in seconds. The hapless ref awarding a Turkey penalty (I don’t think it was one – Ramsey was just sliding but the handball rules are now only decipherable by aliens and Howard Webb so what do I know) before Danny Ward made a stunning save down to his right-hand side in front of the away end. Cue goal level noise from the Red Wall.
The hope is very much the thing that kills you and no sooner had I said “This feels like our night”, and Turkey had scored. I mentioned earlier the space behind fullbacks and that was to be our undoing. The Turkey forward players had clearly worked on making diagonal runs across the box when the ball was in wide areas and this time, it worked perfectly. As the ball came into the Welsh box, a header was planted pretty close to Danny Ward (who I maintain should have done better), and the home fans celebrated for what felt like the 50th time that match. There would be no reprieve for Y Wal Goch and realistically it was game over. 1-0 Turkey.
Wales offered no counter to the goal and fell further behind after a frankly sublime strike from the left-hand side of the Welsh box. Danny Ward could only look and admire as the ball flew into the top corner. 2-0 and a deflated Wales side waited for the seconds to tick away. Time seeming to fly by in contrast to how it dragged at 0-0.
The players applauded us. We applauded them. Rob Page came and joined the post-match mutual appreciation. There was no negative reaction. Just acceptance that we were well beaten.
With time to reflect on the match whilst enduring the ludicrous 2 hour journey back to Samsun and Atakum, we knew we’d been beaten by a better side though there was improvement from Friday night. Wales were in the game at 11 v 11 but poor decision making (our 4th red card in 7 games) left us lame in the contest. Looking at the wider picture, this is a contest we are no longer competing in.
To return to my opening analogy, this was a chaotic and energetic game. One team stood out and the other looked dazed as old and new seemed out of place together. Page will doubtless see this campaign out and the playoffs which will likely follow. Page is now under serious pressure, however. Whilst he can rightly point to transition and the like, we are an experienced international team who have quality. That quality seemingly cannot be unlocked under his stewardship. Page’s inconsistent approach to tactics and formation are as unhelpful as they are baffling. Basic exposure in full back areas is not being addressed as teams look to exploit us there and our famed solidity has gone – Wales conceding on average just over 2 goals per game since our win over Ukraine.
The man from the Rhondda can make excuses if he’d like and restate his belief we can win our 4 remaining games but the reality is stark. The “Bale factor” has changed our attacking prowess but it is not responsible for our frailties – Page is. I will continue to support him through this campaign, but not for the right reasons. He will see this campaign out no matter how much anyone moans about it on Twitter or in the bars across the land, so we should back him. His position is far from safe though and I hope he knows that. Because a perfect turnaround is all that will save him from his P45.
I look forward to the games in September and I hope Page takes his tactics board on his summer holiday. Furthermore, I hope he takes his inspiration from the places we have been this week. Be less Samsun. Be more Istanbul. Be inspiring not tiring. Be energetic not predictable. Meld together old and new and don’t leave us rough around the edges. Because if he doesn’t, he may well have a lot more time on his hands to explore Istanbul, or anywhere else he fancies come next year.