NYON: Timo Werner scored but Germany were held by Spain, while Wales beat Finland and Republic of Ireland grabbed a late draw in the opening matchday of the new UEFA Nations League.

Timo Werner looked sharp and scored with a tidy finish for Germany, who were denied all three points against Spain after a dramatic late equaliser deep into stoppage time.

Werner’s 50th-minute strike looked to be enough to give Germany a winning start, but Jose Gaya popped up to prod in a late, late leveller in the 95th minute to bag a draw for the visitors.

Captain Shane Duffy left it late to ensure Stephen Kenny’s big night did not end in defeat as the Republic of Ireland fought back to secure a 1-1 Nations League draw in Bulgaria.

Kenny’s first game in charge looked destined to end in a disappointing defeat until central defender Duffy, who this week sealed a loan move to Celtic from Brighton, headed home his fourth international goal in the third minute of stoppage time in Sofia.

In the process, he cancelled out Bozhidar Kraev’s 56th-minute opener at the Vail Levski Stadium, and will have been relieved to do so having had to take a share of the blame for it.

It was no more than Ireland deserved on a night when a new-look side promised much but looked set to come up short as they began their preparations for next month’s Euro 2020 play-off in Slovakia.

Win for Wales

Wales opened their Nations League campaign with a 1-0 win against fellow Euro 2020 qualifiers Finland in Helsinki.

Kieffer Moore struck 10 minutes from time – his third international goal in six games – as he latched on to Daniel James’ inviting cross and rewarded Wales’ superiority at the Olympic Stadium.

The lack of pre-season training for both sets of players was evident and Wales captain Gareth Bale, making his first start since February, lasted only 45 minutes before being withdrawn at half-time.

But Wales called the tune for most of the night and deserved a third successive away win.

Nations League results

Latvia 0-0 Andorra
Bulgaria 1-1 Republic of Ireland
Faroe Islands 3-2 Malta
Finland 0-1 Wales
Germany 1-1 Spain
Moldova 1-1 Kosovo
Russia 3-1 Serbia
Slovenia 0-0 Greece
Turkey 0-1 Hungary
Ukraine 2-1 Switzerland

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