Wales Faces Portugal in Nations League Opener

Wales head to Lisbon on Thursday, 24 September, to open their Nations League A campaign against Portugal – and against Cristiano Ronaldo, still the giant shadow on any team sheet he appears on.

Craig Bellamy’s first major test as head coach comes with complications. Harry Wilson is out. Nathan Broadhead is out. Karl Darlow is out. All three have withdrawn through injury, stripping experience and attacking variety from a squad that already walks a tightrope at this level.

At the back, there’s another concern. Highly rated defender Dylan Lawlor is also missing, a blow to the longer-term plan as much as to this one night in Lisbon. The good news for Bellamy is that his captain is back: Ben Davies is available again, bringing leadership, calm and a left foot that still sets the defensive tone for Wales.

Up the pitch, the picture looks more experimental. Uncapped forwards Cian Ashford and Joe Taylor are both in the frame, raw options who offer energy and movement rather than international pedigree. They may not have the history; they do have the hunger. On a night like this, that can matter.

So the question hangs over this fixture as sharply as any tactical board in the team hotel.

If you were Bellamy, how would you do it?

What formation would you trust in Lisbon, in the noise and heat of an away Nations League opener against Ronaldo and a stacked Portugal side? Would you lean on Davies’ experience and build a back three around him, or go bold with a front line that includes Ashford or Taylor to stretch the game?

Pick your shape. Choose your XI. Decide who marks Ronaldo, who presses high, who keeps the ball when the pressure bites.

Then back it. And share it.