Welsh warm-up all pain, no gain

WALES manager Rob Page insisted that Aaron Ramsey had not sustained serious damage following a blow to his shin during a goalless, ill-tempered final Euro 2020 warm-up game against Albania.

Juventus midfielder Ramsey took a heavy kick from Ardian Ismajli a few minutes into the second half but Page said: ‘It was kick to the shin, which is the best case scenario for us. You don’t want him to twist his knee or jar his ankle.’

A bigger headache for Page is the question of whether he should abandon his preference for a system built around a false nine because it didn’t work for him during a poor first half in which Ramsey looked frustrated.

But the national debate in Wales this week will revolve around whether Cardiff City striker Kieffer Moore should start against Switzerland in Baku on Saturday, with Ramsey behind him. That system was far more effective when Page switched by introducing Moore after the interval.

Manchester City’s Matt Smith staked a claim to start in Baku, with quality approach play including a lay-off that set up Neco Williams for a shot from range, which was the closest Wales came to scoring.