The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team advanced to the World Cup play-off finals after a dramatic 120-minute draw in Cardiff, where the score was 1:1, and the “Dragons” defeated the Welsh team with a better penalty shootout and qualified for the World Cup.
In the regular part of the match and extra time, the nets shook once on both sides. The home team took the lead in the 52nd minute when Daniel James took advantage of a mistake in the BiH defense and gave Wales the advantage. However, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team did not give up, and pressure in the final minutes of the match brought an equalizer.
The goal for 1:1 was scored by captain Edin Džeko in the 86th minute after a corner kick and a precise cross by Alajbegović, which sent the game into extra time.
The first half did not bring many chances, although Wales threatened in the 23rd minute when Wilson hit the post of the goal guarded by Vasilj. The same player was dangerous until the break, but the BiH net remained untouched.
At the beginning of the second half, Wales took the lead, and just a few minutes later James had a great chance to increase the score, but hit the crossbar. After that, the BiH national team played more offensively. Demirović had a great chance after the action of Džeko and Memić, but goalkeeper Darlow made a fantastic intervention.
In the rest of the match, Demirović threatened once again, while Bajraktarević kept his teammates busy with good crosses, but the Welsh defense resisted until the end of the match when Džeko equalized.
In extra time, both teams had several good chances. At the beginning of extra time, Bajraktarević shot over the goal from a promising position, while Muharemović prevented an almost certain goal by Wales after an attempt by Wilson with a great reaction.
The score did not change until the end of extra time, so the decision was made after the penalty shootout. In the penalty shootout, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team was more confident and won 4:2.
Thus, the “Dragons” qualified for the play-off finals, where they will face the Italian national football team in the fight for a place in the World Cup.
