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Wales earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory against less-fancied opponents Liechtenstein to keep alive their hopes of World Cup finals qualifying.

The young midfielder scored his first international strike for Wales from inside the box after Liechtenstein’s mix of full-time players, amateurs and students had held out for the majority of the match. James wheeled away in elation with his visible excitement shared by the large contingent of Welsh supporters packed into most sections of the Rheinpark Stadion in Vaduz.

Soon afterwards, however, Jordan James was shown a yellow card and a further booking for his midfield partner resulted in both midfielders are suspended for the upcoming decisive game with their next opponents due to suspension.

The Cardiff City Stadium match is a encounter the Welsh team need to win to overtake North Macedonia and guarantee a better position in the qualifying playoffs in March.

Craig Bellamy had an unfamiliar view from the dugout, the head coach completing a sideline suspension after receiving a additional booking in the qualifiers previously.

The manager's number two his assistant assumed duties in the coaching zone and multiple first-teamers – James, Ethan Ampadu, Rodon, Neco Williams – were a booking away from missing the final qualifier. A pair were booked in moments that may damage their team.

Their opponents, placed 206 out of 210 teams in global rankings, had not scored in their previous six losses and conceded twenty-three times at an average of around four per fixture.

The visitors predictably had most of the play as Liechtenstein adopted a compact shape and defended in numbers.

Their opponent's target remained unthreatened until the forward's high press forced an error and James saw his shot from the edge of the box saved by Büchel.

A similar move worked the next opening, James finding Broadhead now with a precise pass behind the defence.

Broadhead’s excellent control took him past Büchel but the Wrexham striker could not convert from a tight angle.

The Welsh team thought they had broken the deadlock after the opening period when Jordan James headed a high Thomas set-piece back into a congested penalty box.

The Liechtenstein keeper was harassed by Lawlor and Rodon, and his weak punch landed with Nathan Broadhead who scored decisively. But Wales' joy were curtailed when the match official was directed to the VAR screen and determined that at least one of the Welsh centre-halves was in an offside position from Jordan's initial touch.

The visitors increased the pressure after the half-time and Thomas delivered a cross to the opposite side which Daniel James struck the crossbar.

Neco Williams then missed with a header from within the goal area as it began to look like a difficult match for the Welsh side.

However, with the match having entered its second half, Neco Williams executed a intelligent assist for Daniel James to break behind the opposition backline.

James cut out Büchel with a delightful cross across the face of goal, and his namesake Jordan had the straightforward opportunity of ending Wales' tension.