Wales Struggle In Romania Defeat As Brooks Says Not Good Enough

Wales slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Romania in Bucharest, leaving David Brooks frustrated with the performance and calling for major improvement before the Nations League campaign starts in September.

Craig Bellamy’s team created plenty of chances and had more of the ball, yet defensive lapses again proved costly as Romania took advantage late on in Gheorghe Hagi’s first match as national coach.

Romania secured victory four minutes from the end when Adrian Rus rose highest to meet David Matei’s cross, heading past the Wales defence and sealing another match without a clean sheet for Bellamy’s side.

That late goal means Wales have now gone nine games without shutting out an opponent under Bellamy, who has become the first Dragons manager since Mike Smith in 1977 to fail to win any of the first five friendlies, recording two draws and three defeats.

Wales had periods of clear control in Bucharest, registering 20 attempts on goal and enjoying over 57% possession, but Romania were more clinical in key moments and made better use of the decisive areas in the final third.

The match statistics underlined the frustration for Wales, with the visitors often building play neatly yet rarely turning that control into clear chances compared with Romania’s sharp attacking moves.

Earlier, Romania went ahead in the 52nd minute when Florinel Coman finished smartly from a low cutback by Darius Olaru, breaking the deadlock after a first half where both sides had struggled to find a decisive touch.

Wales responded quickly, levelling after 63 minutes as Brooks arrived in the box to guide a controlled volley beyond the goalkeeper from a Daniel James cross, briefly shifting the momentum in favour of the visitors.

"We were not good enough, not at all, he told Match of the Day Wales.We need to watch it back and try and take some positives out of it. We kept the ball quite nicely, but we lacked penetrating passes.We played in the wrong areas. We need to be miles better in the Nations League and in the next camp."

The defeat to Romania, combined with the recent run of results, leaves Bellamy and the squad under pressure to correct defensive issues and sharpen attacking decision-making before the Nations League begins in September, when opponents will punish similar errors.