Wales' hopes of qualifying automatically for the World Cup were effectively ended as they lost 4-2 at home to Belgium in an absorbing contest that left the play-offs as their only realistic remaining route to next summer's finals.

Craig Bellamy's side started brilliantly and took a seventh-minute lead as Joe Rodon headed in from a corner, only for Kevin de Bruyne's controversial penalty to puncture the joyous atmosphere after Ethan Ampadu was harshly penalised for handball following a video assistant referee (VAR) check.

Belgium ruthlessly seized control from that point, cutting Wales to shreds on the break as Jeremy Doku - electrifying all game as he has been for Manchester City this season - sped clear and pulled the ball back for Thomas Meunier to hammer the visitors ahead.

De Bruyne, Doku, Leandro Trossard and others missed chances to add a third goal for the visitors, who eventually put the result beyond doubt when De Bruyne scored his second spot-kick after a much less contentious, clear-cut handball from Jordan James.

Substitute Nathan Broadhead fired in powerfully to raise the faint prospect of a Welsh comeback, which was swiftly extinguished when Trossard restored Belgium's two-goal advantage moments later.

Belgium overtake North Macedonia at the top of Group J, and they are now four points ahead of third-placed Wales with games against Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein to come.

In order for Wales to finish top and qualify automatically, the Belgians would need to lose both those matches - unlikely in the extreme - and Bellamy's side would have to win both their remaining games for a turnaround of miraculous proportions.

Wales may well keep their side of the bargain but it is unthinkable that Belgium would surrender their lead - to Wales at least - from this position of strength.

Therefore, Wales are all but certain to be in the play-offs in March. They will have home advantage for the play-off semi-final if they finish second in their group and, failing that, they will still have a play-off place - albeit away for the semi-final - if they finish third, thanks to their Nations League success.

Their final group position will likely come down to their final game against North Macedonia in November.

As comforting as it might be to know they qualified for the 2022 World Cup via the play-offs, Wales will need to pick themselves up from the floor after seeing their dreams of qualifying automatically ended by another high-scoring and high-octane defeat against Belgium.

Welsh hopes of qualifying automatically had been dependent on results elsewhere going their way, and they got the favour they needed on Friday night when Belgium's goalless draw at home to North Macedonia put Wales' fate back in their own hands.

Bellamy's side still needed to win their remaining three games to be sure of topping their group, though, and this was the toughest of those three.

Belgium might not be the same force that stood at the summit of the world rankings for three years after finishing third at the 2018 World Cup, but they are still a heavyweight of European football with a glittering array of attacking talent.

For all that star quality, Rudi Garcia's side can be vulnerable defensively, as they demonstrated in their helter-skelter 4-3 win against Wales in Brussels in June.

Those same strengths and weaknesses were on display again at Cardiff City Stadium; rattled by their rampant hosts in a blistering opening quarter of an hour, but then deadly on the counter-attack as they turned the game on its head.

Belgium's equaliser was fortuitous as it was against the run of play, with Meunier firing the ball at Ampadu's hand from point-blank range, prompting VAR Pascal Muller to advise referee Daniel Siebert to take a look at the screen and point to the spot.

After De Bruyne dispatched his penalty, however, the visitors were the better team.

Wales' default mode under Bellamy is to press high and get on the front foot but, after falling behind, their desperation to get forward played perfectly into their opponents' hands.

The hosts left oceans of space behind them and their isolated defenders could not contain their opponents, none more impressive than the sparkling Doku.

He was afforded the freedom of Canton to hare towards the byline and cross to Meunier for Belgium's opening goal, and the City winger continued to torment the likes of Ben Cabango and Ben Davies, who was given the runaround on his 100th international appearance.

Belgium have now gone a staggering 46 World Cup and European Championship qualifiers without losing.

The last time they were beaten was by Wales in 2015, here at Cardiff City Stadium.

Bellamy's men will need a few more famous Cardiff nights if they are to make it to next summer's World Cup from here.