Marko Arnautovic double frustrates Wales after Joe Allen’s superb opener

For Wales it was a point that could have been three and also came at a cost, yet once the dust settles and Chris Coleman and his players clear their heads, they will come to view this as a valuable result. Despite leading twice, Wales were never in control of the game and Marko Arnautovic ruthlessly capitalised on some slack defending to earn Austria the draw that they deserved.

While Coleman was bitterly disappointed with the way Wales gifted Austria and Arnautovic a second goal shortly after the interval, the sight of Joe Allen pulling up with a hamstring problem was every bit as troubling. With fellow midfielder Aaron Ramsey already missing through injury, the loss of Allen is a blow that Wales could really do without ahead of Sunday’s home match against Georgia.

The Stoke City player opened the scoring against Austria with a brilliant volley – his third goal in as many matches for club and country – and Wales will badly miss his craft and guile against a Georgia side that are likely to come to Cardiff with the intention of frustrating Coleman’s team.

The manager said that Allen “had a twinge in the hamstring” and revealed that the 26-year-old would undergo a scan in the next 24 hours to establish the extent of the problem. He made it clear, however, that Wales would not be prepared to take any risks and on that basis it seems highly unlikely that Allen will feature against Georgia.

“That’s how it is,” Coleman said, when it was put to him that Wales will badly miss two of their most creative players. “We probably won’t have Joe, we already don’t have Rambo. Have we got enough to get a result on Sunday without Joe Allen? Yes, we have. So I won’t make any excuses.”

In the end Wales just about got over the line against Austria. Hanging on at times and indebted to some fine goalkeeping from Wayne Hennessey, the visitors managed to keep Austria at bay in the final half hour to collect a point from what is their toughest qualification game on paper.

Coleman was the first to admit that it was not pretty to watch – it says much about this Wales performance that they looked most dangerous when Gareth Bale was taking long throws – yet there was also satisfaction to be taken from the result they gleaned in difficult circumstances.

“People look at us, because of what happened in the tournament [the European Championship finals in the summer], and think we will come into his campaign and play every game as if we’re Barcelona or Spain, but it just doesn’t work like that,” the Wales manager said.

“Sometimes you have to pick a result up and play ugly and that was how you would describe that performance tonight.

“In terms of quality with the ball, we gave away a lot of possession, we made a lot of mistakes and we looked indecisive, which is not something you can say about this team on too many occasions.

“To give them a goal from the restart within two or three minutes ... we don’t do things like that,” Coleman added. “We started slow and nervous [in the second half], they got a goal and they came for us for 20 minutes, but I’ve got to give credit to the players for hanging on.”

While it was difficult to remember a Wales game when Bale was so anonymous for long periods, the Real Madrid forward still managed to have a hand in both goals. It was Bale’s run and cross down the left that led to Allen, after some poor defending from Kevin Wimmer, striking a glorious 22-yard left-footed volley into the far corner of the net.

Austria, however, were level only six minutes later. David Alaba, the Bayern Munich left-back who plays in central midfield for his country, showed his class with a pitching wedge pass over the top of the Wales defence that picked out Arnautovic’s clever run. Darting in from the left, the Stoke winger got away from Chris Gunter before stooping to head past Hennessey.

Although Coleman was entitled to be annoyed with the Austria coach Marcel Koller’s pre-match claim that Wales were lucky at Euro 2016, there was no doubt that the visitors benefited from a large slice of good fortune on the stroke of half-time. Bale’s long throw was flicked on by Sam Vokes and when goalkeeper Robert Almer blocked James Chester’s diving header with his legs, the ball bounced off Wimmer and over the line.

Then came the error that led to Austria’s second equaliser. Allen’s careless pass inside the Wales half had Chester stretching for a ball that he was unable to control and Arnautovic pounced. Sprinting clear in the inside left channel, Arnautovic expertly steered the ball into the far corner and Austria were level again.