UEFA Under-19 Championship Qualifying Round: Group 5
Wales 1-0 Scotland
Wednesday, 13 November 2024
Forthbank Stadium, Stirling
Wales 1 (Biancheri 18)
Scotland 0
Team News
Scotland made seven changes from their last outing which was a friendly in Hungary last month. Lennon Miller captained the side as he dropped down from the Under-21s who do not have a game this window, with Ryan One also leading the line after making his Under-21s debut last month.
Rory Mahady, Josh Dede, Mitchell Frame, Kyle Ure and Rudi Allan-Molotnikov also came into the starting line up.
As it Happened
Allan-Molotkinov has been prolific in the Under-19s' last few games and he started brightly, robbing Wales' Brayden Clarke before cutting the ball back to One whose shot was deflected over.
Hibs' forward Allan-Molotnikov was involved again from the resulting corner as Miller's clever low ball found him but his shot was once instead deflected wide.
Scotland had started well, dominating possession in the early stages, but they were undone in the 18th minute as Frederick Issaka drove the ball across the goal to pick out Gabriele Biancheri who stabbed the ball in from a couple of yards out to make it 1-0 to Wales.
The young Scots looked to respond and came close a minute later as Allan-Molotnikov's deep cross picked out Josh Dede who crashed a volley just wide of the near post.
Rory MacLeod was next to try his luck in the 25th minute as he drove at the Wales defence before unleashing a curling effort that Wales keeper Lewys Benjamin did well to tip over.
Allan-Molotnikov was looking the most likely and he saw another curling effort deflected over in the 38th minute as he latched on to Miller's chipped through ball.
Scotland could not find a leveller before the half-time break and MacFarlane introduced Sam Chambers and Aidan Borland early in the second half as he looked to get back on level terms.
Left wing-back Frame was seeing a lot of the ball as the second half progressed and his deep cross found fellow wing-back Dede who headed wide at the back post just before the hour mark.
Another Frame cutback in the 65th minute then found Allan-Molotnikov but once again there was a Wales defender in the way deflecting the ball to safety.
Allan-Molotnikov was released again in the 71st minute by a brilliant One through ball, however, the Hibernian forward who could only curl over after working half a yard.
Bailey Rice and Daniel Cummings entered the fray in the last few minutes and the latter was close to an equaliser in added time as he spun on the edge of the box and unleashed a shot but it was held by Benjamin as the match ended in a narrow Wales win.
Teams
Scotland: Mahady, Dede, Donovan, Smith (Cummings 88), MacLeod (Chambers 55), Miller, One, Molotnikov (Rice 88), Frame, Ure (Borland 55), Campbell (Bavidge 77)
Unused subs: Williamson, Grant, Watret, Sutherland.
Next Up
Next up for Scotland is Liechtenstein on Saturday in the second match of this UEFA qualifying tournament.