Danny Ward starts in Wales’ win over Norway, while Jacques Ekomié and Issa Kaboré help their countries secure victories in Wrexham’s international round-up.
Danny Ward helped Wales secure an important Nations League victory over Norway as Wrexham’s international representatives experienced a mixture of encouraging results and demanding fixtures.
Ward retained his starting position for Wales’ 2–1 victory over Norway in Cardiff, making his third consecutive appearance between the posts during the current Nations League campaign.
The result provided a welcome response to the earlier 2–0 defeat in Denmark, where both Ward and Moore had started. Ward made two saves in Copenhagen, but Gustav Isaksen’s goal and an unfortunate Ben Davies own goal left Wales without a point.
Back on home soil, goals from Daniel James and Neco Williams delivered Wales’ first victory of the campaign.
The turnaround was huge for Craig Bellamy’s side. Wales had entered the Norway fixture needing a response, and the victory gave them their first points in the group. For Ward, another international start also offered an opportunity to maintain his match rhythm while representing his country.
Wrexham’s African internationals enjoyed successful outings of their own, with Ekomié producing particularly eye-catching defensive numbers for Gabon.
The full-back completed 90 minutes in a 2–0 victory over Niger, helping his country record their first win of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
Ekomié led the match with six successful tackles and 15 duels won. Those figures underline his involvement in a performance that ended in a clean sheet.
Gabon finished this portion of the international schedule with one victory and one defeat, leaving them second in their qualifying group.
Kaboré also completed a winning performance, playing the entire match as Burkina Faso defeated the Central African Republic 1–0.
It was his second full 90-minute appearance of the break, with Burkina Faso collecting a victory and a draw from their opening qualifiers. Their schedule now includes a friendly against Argentina on October 3, the first senior men’s international meeting between the countries.
Cadamarteri experienced a more frustrating result, completing 90 minutes as Jamaica lost 1–0 to Honduras in the CONCACAF Nations League.
However, the forward still has further opportunities to contribute. Jamaica face El Salvador at 3am BST on October 3, then meet Honduras again at the same time on October 6.
The remaining fixtures mean Wrexham’s internationals will return with different workloads. Their minutes, travel and recovery will therefore be important considerations when club preparations resume.
Ward’s winning appearance and the successful performances of Ekomié and Kaboré provide positive developments to follow. For Cadamarteri and the players still involved, the next matches offer another chance to finish the international period strongly.
