As Halloween approaches, Wales and Belgium received an unexpected scare during their World Cup qualifying match when play was temporarily halted due to a rat making its way onto the pitch.
Shortly after the hour mark on Monday, the rat made a brief tour of the Cardiff City Stadium before Brennan Johnson, playing for Tottenham Hotspur, successfully shooed it away, following an unsuccessful attempt by Thibaut Courtois, the Real Madrid goalkeeper.
After being gently encouraged off the pitch, the rat exited behind an advertising board, allowing the game to resume.
Once the rat departed, Wales saw their chances for automatic World Cup qualification falter as Belgium claimed the top spot in Group J with a 4-2 victory.
Wales centre-back Joe Rodon opened the scoring just seven minutes into the match, marking his second consecutive qualifying match goal in the Welsh capital.
However, their lead was short-lived; just four minutes later, Kevin De Bruyne capitalized on a handball by Ethan Ampadu to level the score. Belgium then took the lead when Thomas Meunier scored following a swift counter-attack.
De Bruyne added a second goal from the penalty spot in the 76th minute after another handball infraction, although substitute Nathan Broadhead gave Wales a glimmer of hope with a goal.
Yet, Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard quickly restored Belgium’s two-goal advantage, effectively sealing the match.
Wales now trails Belgium by four points in Group J and appears to be in a tight contest with North Macedonia, who drew 1-1 at home against Kazakhstan, for the second spot. Craig Bellamy’s squad is likely looking towards the playoffs in March as their best hope for qualification.
Information from PA contributed to this report.