Turkey v Wales: Nations League – live

16 min: … and now Demiral has a whack from long range. That one goes over the bar as well. Possibly an even wilder attempt. Good work by Güler down the right to set it up.

14 min: Aktürkoğlu blazes a shot over the bar from distance. Turkey are beginning to find their rhythm now; they just need to locate their range.

13 min: That wasn’t a million miles away from the challenge Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer got away with on Mikel Merino in the Champions League the other week. Just as well Mikel Arteta doesn’t manage Turkey in his spare time.

11 min: Yılmaz is down again, flattened by Darlow who was busy punching clear a ball bouncing on the edge of his six-yard box. Turkey want a penalty but the referee shows no interest whatsoever. “Can’t help thinking Bellamy has missed a trick by playing Harry Wilson from the start,” opines Richard Hirst. “As any fule kno, even us Fulham supporters, he’s best left till the end.”

9 min: Johnson goes into the book for a fairly brazen kick at Yılmaz. No real need for that, and now he’s on the disciplinary tightrope for the next hour and 20 minutes.

7 min: Akgün twists the blood of Williams as he advances down the right. He nearly bursts clear into the Wales box but Davies comes over to get in the way and usher the ball out of play for a goal kick. This game is rattling along nicely.

6 min: Wales are definitely up for this. It’s all a bit frantic. Wilson dribbles down the middle and draws a foul from Müldür. Johnson and Roberts combine down the right in the hope of earning a corner. Not quite, but full marks for full-throttle ambition. Turkey counter through the prodigy Güler, who glides in from the right and takes the evening’s first shot in anger. Darlow behind it all the way. The crowd are whistling quite a lot.

4 min: Wales, every atom their manager’s creation, continue to pile forward with determination. It nearly costs them, though, as Akgün breaks clear down the right on the counter. The visitors are fortunate his attempt to find Yılmaz in the centre with a low cross is no good.

2 min: … but then Thomas comes again down the left and goes over having brushed Yılmaz. There doesn’t look to be a great deal in it, and Yılmaz is livid, so it’s probably for the best that nothing comes of the resulting free kick.

1 min: … but nothing comes of it …

33 secs: A fast start by Wales, with Thomas barrelling down the left wing at speed to win the first corner of the match …

Wales get the ball rolling. “Wales will be lucky to escape without a roasting this afternoon,” predicts Jeremy Boyce. “The crowd and atmosphere will be cranked up to ten, it will be hot despite the fact that it’s nearly winter. I used to play a bit on Hackney Marshes, back in the day before they demolished the tower blocks, and if you were up against a Türkiye Spor Kulübü team, there were plenty in northeast London, you knew you were in for a tough match and should have maybe said no to the last pint the night before. I’m sure nothing has changed.”

The teams are out! Turkey in red, Wales in second-choice [squints, adjusts pince-nez, holds press release at different angle to catch light] pearl citrine. A fine atmosphere in Kayseri, the city hosting the national team for the first time since 2013. Turkey beat Andorra 5-0 that day, it’s probably worth pointing that out. Anyway, we’ll be off in a minute!

Craig Bellamy talks to S4C with the atmosphere in the Kadir Has Stadium in Kayseri already bubbling up nicely. “Mark Harris is a dangerous profile … speed, looking to stretch the game … definitely a player for this type of game … the first 15-20 minutes will be massive but it will settle down … there’s a lot of scenarios that could arise … you have to embrace it … we’ve done enough meetings … hopefully we’ll be able to find solutions when they occur … adapt to situations … that’s really the test for tonight … this is football, it’s why it’s the greatest game in the world … I have full trust in the players, I believe they’re a lot better than I was … these moments … you have to take a step back .. this is why, to come here in an atmosphere like this … it’s going to be a test of course … but life’s about that, surely … whatever the outcome, I’m looking forward to what happens!”

Turkey – or Türkiye, to give them their Fifa-recognised name; the FAW haven’t pushed the button on Cymru yet – are much changed from the team sent out for the 0-0 draw in Cardiff back in early September. Merih Demiral, Kerem Aktürkoğlu, Eren Elmalı, Yunus Akgün and captain Hakan Çalhanoğlu all start, replacing that day’s selection of Zeki Çelik, İsmail Yüksek and Kaan Ayhan, who are on the bench, and Çağlar Söyüncü and Kenan Yıldız, who are not in the squad.

Craig Bellamy makes four changes to the team that started the 1-0 win over Montenegro last month. Connor Roberts, Sorba Thomas, Jordan James and Brennan Johnson are in, taking the places of Ben Cabango, Liam Cullen and David Brooks, who are on the bench, and the absent Wes Burns.

The teams

Preamble