Wales take on the USA on Thursday night, before UEFA Nations League matches against the Republic of Ireland and Finland. Kieffer Moore is likely to be a key figure, a striker who Jack Hammett believes has become as important to Wales as Olivier Giroud has been to France.
Variety has become a significant thread running through Wales football squads at present and the current group is certainly that.
On the one hand, there are players from the Premier League, Bundesliga, and Serie A, whilst at the other end of the scale an opportunity has been given to players from League Two.
Newport County’s Josh Sheehan and Tom King have been promoted to the senior squad for the first time after their table-topping form in the lower reaches of the Football League.
Brennan Johnson has also made the squad for the first time after going on loan to Lincoln City in League One from Nottingham Forest. He has scored twice and assisting four times in just nine matches.
But Ryan Giggs’ success in mixing things up a little is maybe best illustrated in the rise and rise of Kieffer Moore.
Not so long ago, he was a journeyman striker with Yeovil, Forest Green, Rotherham, Barnsley and then Wigan.
Now, he’s leading the line for Cardiff City, while for his country he’s become Wales’ answer to France’s Olivier Giroud.
Don’t count the goals – measure the contribution.
It’s almost been an entire year since Wales took to the pitch in that crucial Euro qualifying match against Hungary.
By that night it was already clear to everyone just how important Moore was to this Wales side.
Giggs expressed his desire to play fluid, attractive football upon his arrival but struggled to implement his game plan effectively in international football.
The solution to poor performances was found using similar tactics to that of the current World Cup winners, France and their use of Giroud.
The Chelsea striker famously played every match of France’s 2018 World Cup campaign without scoring a single goal.
Fans around the world questioned why French manager Didier Deschamps would want to start with Giroud in the side when Les Bleus could pick an attacking line up featuring any of Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappé, Ousman Dembélé, Alexandre Lacazette, Kingsley Coman, or Anthony Martial.
But it was because Giroud put his own self-interests to one side for the benefit of the team and focussed on bringing out the best in players like Mbappe and Griezmann which made him so pivotal to France.
Giroud fulfilled his own role and in so doing made France one of the most dangerous attacking sides in international football.
For all the footballing talent France has to offer, it’s interesting to note that the most frequent pass combination in the World Cup final two years ago didn’t involve Pogba or Kanté; Varane or Umtiti; or even Mbappe and Griezmann it was the combination of Lloris and Giroud.
Using the centre-forward to build around and disrupt the Croatian back four was key to France winning the final comprehensively and it was a tactic Wales utilised against the World Cup finalists in the 1-1 draw towards the end of the last year.
Moore won six aerial duels against Croatia in that match, more than any other player. His two goals before the deciding fixture against Hungary had both come from using his head and his aerial battles against Slovakian centre-back Norbert Gyömbér forced the referee to give the defender a red card to go with his bandaged forehead from an earlier clash with the Welsh striker.
It’s no coincidence that the Red Wall mistook Ramsey’s bullet header early in the first half for the forehead of Kieffer Moore that night.
Moore, though, was stood at the back post as the ball hit the back of the net, arms aloft, with three Hungarian defenders occupied by his presence in the box,.
That allowed Ramsey to time his run, unmarked, into the six-yard box to give Wales an early lead.
It was the start of what was to be another special night at the Cardiff City Stadium.
The Hungarian defence was terrified of Moore, and they were right to be.
Early in the second half, Wales were awarded a free-kick, two defenders picked up the Lactics striker but it still was not enough to contain him.
He defeated his markers and steered the ball in the direction of an unmarked Ramsey who coolly finished to book Wales’ place for the Championship finals.
Giround is 6ft 4in. Moore is 6ft 5in.
They have both inspired some of the best terrace songs of the past few years.
Every time Kieffer Moore celebrates early, Wales score🤷🏼♂️🏴 @KRFMoore pic.twitter.com/hPV5ZQXzMl
— Red Welsh FC (@RedWelshFC) November 20, 2019
When he was theirs, Arsenal fans sang, “Chim Chiminey, Chim Chimney, Chim Chim Giroud. Who needs Van Persie when we’ve got Giroud!
Wales supporters expressed their devotion to all things Kieffer with, “Six Foot Seven, Head of Heaven . . . Feed Me Till I’m Kieffer Moore”.
Welsh fans may have exaggerated Moore’s height, but not his impact.
But the Moore-Giround comparison is not just about height and songs. They are both capable of being target men but it’s also their ability with the ball at their feet, their link-up play with others, and their character, determination and intelligence that make it all click into place for their sides.
Cardiff fans were familiar with the exceptional footwork of the striker before signing him this summer after being one of the victims of his two back-heeled goals in the Championship last season.
Clinical in the box, Moore has already scored three times for his new club and has shown his ability to link play together, assisting twice to be both Cardiff’s top scorer and provider so far this season.
Moore’s journey to this place has been a long one. Starting his career in non-league at Truro City and Dorchester, he worked his way up the leagues, via a season in Norway at Viking FK, to becoming Cardiff first-choice striker and one of the first names on the Wales team sheet.
Playing in the lower leagues and spending time abroad will have defined Moore’s character and personality. It is similar to Giroud, who spent the early part of his career playing in the fifth tier of French football before reaching the dizzying heights of World Cup glory.
Of course, comparing Giroud and Moore isn’t fair in all respects.
Giroud is a World Cup winner with over 100 caps and his country’s second-highest goalscorer with 42.
Moore has nine caps and three goals.
But there’s something to take away from it that proves the importance of a player different from those around them.
Aged 28, Moore is an outlier from the usual debutants selected by Giggs, who has ousted experienced players for those who are young and yet to reach their full potential.
Another older head on the pitch, who has a different experience of football than the elite level Ramsey and Bale are used to, gives the side confidence, placing their trust in a player who can offer a different answer to puzzles given by different opposition.
Wales v France at some stage next summer in the Euro finals? Moore v Giroud, anyone?
You never know.