Tottenham Hotspur defender Ben Davies gave away a ‘remarkably soft’ penalty for Wales last night, which ultimately cost them a vital win.
Wales were held to a 1-1 draw against Turkey on Tuesday evening which led to them missing out on automatic qualification for Euro 2024.
Tottenham duo Ben Davies and Brennan Johnson started from the off, with the latter heavily involved in some of Wales’ best moments.
Neco Williams opened the scoring for Rob Page’s men inside the opening 10 minutes with a neat finish.
Page’s side had plenty of opportunities to double their lead throughout the game, with Johnson going close on a few occasions.
The 22-year-old was also shoved to the floor inside the Turkey penalty area in the 29th minute. But his appeals for a spot-kick were waved away by the referee and then the VAR.
In the 68th minute, Davies was punished for a push on Kenan Yildiz and Turkey were awarded a penalty.
The decision to award a penalty against the Tottenham man seemed harsh as there was minimal contact between him and Yildiz.
And despite the penalty costing Wales automatic qualification, the Welsh media have praised Davies for his display.
Davies praised after latest Wales display
Wales Online handed Davies a seven out of 10 for his performance and stated the penalty decision was ‘remarkably soft’.
The outlet wrote: “Solid for so much of the night. Mopped up effortlessly and put in a couple of really good tackles and interceptions.
“Penalty decision against him looked remarkably soft.”
Wales have every right to feel aggrieved after being denied a penalty in the first half following a blatant push on Johnson.
Davies’ foul was arguably much less of a foul than the one that denied Johnson a shot at goal.
Nevertheless, Page’s men will have the opportunity to book their place at next year’s Euros through the play-offs in March.
As for Davies, he was solid apart from that one incident and was evidently baffled after the referee pointed to the spot.
The £10 million man looks set to continue in central defence for Spurs over the coming weeks following Micky van de Ven’s injury.
Davies put in a solid display at Molineux last time out and the 30-year-old is expected to start alongside Eric Dier as Spurs face Aston Villa on Sunday.