Wales suffered more penalty shootout heartache as Bosnia and Herzegovina triumphed 4-2 on spot-kicks to end their World Cup hopes at Cardiff City Stadium. Two years to the day since a similar defeat to Poland, Brennan Johnson spooned over and Neco Williams saw his penalty saved by Nikola Vasilj after 133 minutes of action.
Daniel James had put Wales ahead with a stunning strike seven minutes into the second half, but veteran striker Edin Dzeko, who turned 40 this month, glanced in a corner to force extra time. Tarik Muharemovic then made a preposterous headed block to deny Harry Wilson, and Kerim Alajbegovic scored the decisive penalty.
Head coach Craig Bellamy insisted his side would not be labelled a hard-luck story. 'We expect to be at major tournaments, we really push ourselves to be there,' he said. 'I'm definitely proud, but disappointed we weren't able to make it to back-to-back World Cups.' Wales now face a dead rubber against Northern Ireland on Tuesday, while Bosnia host Italy for a spot in the finals.
James had earlier cracked a shot against the underside of the bar via a deflection from Muharemovic, and Wilson struck the upright in a dominant first half. Bellamy's attacking quartet of Wilson, Brooks, James and Johnson caused constant problems for the visitors. However, Dzeko's equaliser and the subsequent extra time drama saw Wales lose control of a chaotic contest.
