Bale powered home a header from a Jazz Richards cross in the closing stages of the game in Cyprus to give Wales their fifth win in seven group games and setting up the perfect party in Cardiff on Sunday where we can seal our qualification with two games to go.
It was the perfect tonic on a testing night in Cyprus where Wales were tested by their hosts but potentially looked the most likely to score with Neil Taylor in particular guilty of missing a great chance in the first half.
Wales went into the game three points clear at the top of their group and knowing that back to back wins would take the nation to France next summer after a brilliant start to their campaign. Backed by a huge and vocal support in Nicosia there was the right belief now that the hard work had been done and, after so many near misses in the past, this was the time where we would complete the job that we had started and ensure that Chris Coleman’s team went down in history as breaking that horrible duck.
It looked like it might be another frustrating evening in Cyprus when Edwards’s goal was controversially ruled out.
The Wolves midfielder headed into the bottom corner but his celebrations were quickly curtailed as referee Szymon Marciniak judged Hal Robson-Kanu had pushed a Cypriot defender.
A point on Sunday could prove to be enough but with a qualifier against Andorra (7 defeats from 7) also to come then it is now a question of when rather than if and next summer Wales will finally take their place at the finals party.
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