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Ryan Giggs saluted the character of his Wales team after a 1-1 draw against Croatia kept alive their Euro 2020 qualifying chances.

Gareth Bale’s 33rd goal for his country cancelled out Nikola Vlasic’s ninth-minute strike to keep Wales within touching distance of a top-two spot.

Wins away to Azerbaijan and at home to Hungary next month would secure qualification, as long as Slovakia do not collect more than four points from their last two games.

Slovakia’s next game is in Croatia, where the World Cup finalists will be seeking to book their ticket to next summer’s European Championship.

“We showed character coming back, we didn’t panic,” Wales boss Giggs said after the Cardiff draw.

“We showed commitment, but quality as well. I don’t get a lot of time with them, but what they showed doesn’t surprise me as I see the quality in training.

“We have played two teams, Slovakia and now Croatia, who can hurt you.

“But it’s credit to them, we gave them the information and it’s a step forward.”

Giggs described Daniel James as “streetwise” after the Manchester United winger was clattered by defender Domagoj Vida in the first half.

James received lengthy treatment from medics on the pitch, but he was able to continue and Giggs said the 21-year-old had passed the concussion protocols.

“The physio came over but there was no problem. We did all the (concussion) tests at half-time and he was fine,” Giggs said.

“He stayed down and was a bit streetwise. He told the doctors ‘I’m not moving, I’m just sitting still’.

“Not to get anyone sent off, he was just using his nous.”

Wales will head to Azerbaijan next month without the influential Joe Allen.

The Stoke midfielder collected his third booking of the competition and will be suspended for the Baku clash.

“He knew he was on a booking, but I don’t think he realised there was a player behind him,” Giggs said.

“We will miss his composure but we’ve players who can come in.

“Joe Morrell was fantastic to come on in that situation against Croatia.

“We have to win our last two games but that point could be vital.

“We’re relying on Croatia to beat Slovakia, but we need to win our two games. It won’t be easy.”

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic was unhappy with Bale’s equaliser after Mateo Kovacic had been left on the turf by Ben Davies’ challenge in first-half stoppage time.

The Chelsea midfielder did not return for the second half but Dalic said: “He seems to be fine.

“But he felt his knee in that challenge so we’ll see in the next few days what the diganosis is.

“Mateo was injured and had to leave the game, but we can’t allow ourselves to concede a goal in this way.

“We are not very happy. It was similar to the games against Hungary.

“We started well and scored, but we didn’t continue in same aggressive way.”

Germany coach Joachim Low reflected on a job well done in Tallinn after his side overcame the early dismissal of Emre Can to beat Estonia 3-0 in their Euro 2020 qualifier.

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan scored twice in the second half after the Juventus midfielder had been shown a straight red card for a professional foul.

Substitute Timo Werner added a third as Germany, who had been depleted by injuries, moved level on points with Group C leaders Holland and three clear of Northern Ireland.

“Firstly, I’m happy we got the job done. It was tough work out there,” Low said at his press conference.

“We had to regroup after the red card, the team did well after the break, we did not concede and scored three goals.

“The decisive factor was that we increased the tempo in the second half and kept calm.

“This week was not easy, with all the injuries and everything. We stayed calm and scored, so we are pleased.”

The German head coach had no complaints with Can’s dismissal.

After allowing the ball to run across him as he turned on the edge of the penalty area, former Liverpool midfielder Can made a rash sliding challenge to trip Frank Liivak as the Estonia forward looked to get clear on goal.

“Looking at the situation, you cannot award a yellow, it’s a red card,” Low said.

Veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer had replaced Marc-Andre Ter Stegen to captain Germany.

The Bayern Munich keeper felt the team had dealt well with the situation they found themselves in so early on.

“We were down to 10 men after 15 minutes, which makes everything more difficult as you have to reset,” Neuer said according to www.dfb.de.

“Because of that, I didn’t think it was a bad performance. It was a matter of time when the goals would eventually come. At some point we put them away.”

Estonia had been thrashed 8-0 in Mainz just four months ago.

Manager Karel Voolaid felt his side had produced a response.

“The fighting spirit was better than in Mainz, but it is the class of the opponent which beats us,” he told reporters.

“I really wanted a goal – for the team, for the audience, for the fans. I believed we could get some bravery from that.

“But let’s face it – if they were 11, we would have had a very, very hard fight.

“Even a 10-man Germany is very difficult to beat if they are organised in defence.”

Spain head coach Robert Moreno was disappointed with his side’s performance as they were held to a 1-1 Euro 2020 Group F qualifying draw by Norway.

Josh King scored a stoppage-time penalty as Norway fought back after Saul Niguez had given the away side the lead two minutes after the break.

The result, combined with Sweden’s 4-0 victory over Malta, meant Spain’s wait to qualify for next summer’s finals continued as they hold a five-point lead at the top of the table.

Spain head to second-placed Sweden on Tuesday with a point needed to make it through and, in quotes reported by AS, Moreno said: “It wasn’t the game we wanted.

“I don’t have the feeling that they’ve caused us much danger beyond the penalty.

“When a team has nothing to lose these things can happen. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth because it was at the end of the game.

“The message now is that with a draw against Sweden we will qualify, and that’s what we are going try and do.”

Spain captain Sergio Ramos helped keep Norway at bay until the last-minute leveller ruined a clean sheet as he made history by becoming Spain’s most-capped player, passing Iker Casillas with his 168th international appearance.

Real Madrid defender Ramos was booked with 11 minutes remaining meaning he will miss Tuesday’s match.

On Ramos, Moreno added: “Ramos’ record is incredible, and still he has the desire to continue competing and wanting to keep winning titles.

“I want to congratulate him publicly and hopefully he can give us plenty of joy for a long time to come.”

Ramos admitted he was disappointed to only collect a point after breaking the national record but hopes Spain can learn and move on from their mistakes.

He said: “I have a bittersweet taste. I would have liked to beat the record with a victory.

“In the end, being a legend or not is marked by people. Being active, it is difficult to name someone with that word. I enjoy every day. The numbers are there. It will be seen in the future.

“I thank everyone for the support I have felt, from my family, colleagues, coaches…I have enjoyed a wonderful career with Spain. I will be eternally grateful. I still want to win with Spain.

“It was not one of the best games, but we added a point.

“From the results that are not so good, we must learn. Not everything has been positive. That helps us to grow as a team. You have to be optimistic. The last matches have been very good.”

King was delighted with his late equaliser leaving Norway still in contention four points further back in fourth.

King : “You have to have balls to take that penalty. It was lovely that it went in.

“The crowd helped us today. They gave us an extra push for the last 10 minutes. We put up a good fight in the first half and raised ourselves the last 15 to 20 minutes in the second half.

“We have everything to play for Romania. We need to focus on ourselves. There are three games left and we have to try to score nine points.”