Defender Neco Williams has revealed he played in Wales' opening World Cup game one day after being told his grandfather had died.

Williams, who was substituted in the second half of the 1-1 draw against the USA in Doha, was in tears at the end of the game.

The 21-year-old pointed to the sky in tribute to Kelvin Jones.

"To go from crying all day to start in a World Cup game was extremely tough," Williams posted on social media.

Team-mate Connor Roberts also dedicated the performance to his own grandfather, who he revealed died just before the Wales squad flew to Qatar.

Read more: Neco Williams played after suffering family bereavement

Image source, Getty Images

Jess Fishlock
Wales' most-capped footballer

I think Kieffer Moore is great, he's a great player for us and a great player in general.

He's like a modern number nine, he can hold the ball up but he is very good with his feet.

He brings in players, he links players up, he can score goals, he can move as well, he has so many attributes.

He is just a perfect fit for the players that can then play around him, he really is just fantastic.

Gareth Bale said he had "no doubts" about taking the penalty which brought Wales' first World Cup goal since 1958 in their 1-1 draw with the USA.

Timothy Weah's calm finish looked set to give the US victory until Bale was fouled by Walker Zimmerman and stepped up to score the 82nd-minute penalty.

Captain Bale told ITV: "Yeah, [it was] always [going to be] me. No doubts in my head. I feel like I have to step up and I'm happy to do so."

Bale added to BBC Sport: "Of course you feel the pressure but it's my responsibility, my job to step up and take penalties as the penalty taker.

"I'm happy to do that and obviously thankful it went in."

Read more: Gareth Bale had 'no doubts' about historic goal against USA

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Kath Morgan
Former Wales defender on BBC Radio Cymru

There are no 'small' teams in World Cups any more.

Every team that has qualified deserves to be here, and if you have a bad day, someone will take advantage of that.

Defender Chris Mepham says Wales know Friday's match against Iran is a must-win after their opening World Cup draw against USA.

His Bournemouth team-mate Kieffer Moore helped turned Wales' fortunes around against the Americans after the striker arrived as a second-half substitute, and Mepham says "the game is never done" for Wales.

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium

While much of our attention will naturally be on Wales today, this is a match of equal importance for Iran, who are in desperate need of victory after their opening 6-2 demolition by England.

As was the case for their first encounter, the build-up to this fixture has been dominated by off-field issues, namely their players’ reaction to anti-government protests in their home country.

They declined to sing their national anthem before the game against England and, after manager Carlos Queiroz took umbrage to questions on that theme yesterday, it will be interesting to see what the players do today.

Jess Fishlock
Wales' most-capped footballer

In midfield the big question is do they go two holding and one 10 or do they try the flat three in midfield again with Gareth Bale and Kieffer Moore up top together?

If it was me I'd go with two holding and Aaron Ramsey in the 10, I feel he needs a bit of freedom to see how good he is and how he can play make.

A key topic of conversation during the opening matches was Fifa's stance on the OneLove armbands.

Gareth Bale was among a group of European national captains who planned to wear the armband during games to promote diversity and inclusion.

But they were told by world governing body Fifa they faced "sporting sanctions" if they did so.

Football Association of Wales chief Noel Mooney told ITV it was a "terrible" decision.

Wales' players took decisive action too, displaying a rainbow flag at their training session on Wednesday.

"For months and months we have known we were going to wear the OneLove armband and they certainly did," said Mooney.

"To lay that one on us is pretty cheap and pretty low, to be frank. We are really disappointed by that attitude.

"We have been absolutely furious about this. We have given Fifa everything we have got in terms of how furious we are about this decision. We think it was a terrible decision."

Read more: 'Furious' Wales take LGBTQ+ rights stand

Image source, FAW

Iwan Roberts
Former Wales striker on BBC Radio Cymru

I'm expecting a much better performance from Iran today. They'll be desperate to respond and I don't think it reflected their ability as a team at all.

Losing their goalkeeper had a huge effect on them. They didn't have any faith in their replacement keeper. They only lost two games out of the 20 they played in the lead-up to that England game, so they just had a bad day at the office but so did Wales in the first half against USA.

Iran are so much better than that, they will be on it today. Wales have got to be wary of that.

Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey thanked Wales fans for their "amazing" backing during Monday's 1-1 draw against the USA but says the team need to start better in their second World Cup Group B game against Iran today.

James Collins
Former Wales defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

The difference Kieffer Moore made was there for all to see.

Iran struggled to deal with crosses and set plays and that will be a big part of Wales’ game.

USA pressed us and we didn’t have a plan B. Now we can be a bit more direct.

But then there's Aaron Ramsey and he did not perform how he normally does. Looking at him and everything he has given for his country, he certainly needs to up his performance in today’s game.

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In case you missed it, our man in Doha, Dafydd Pritchard, has been a busy boy with some lovely Wales features ahead of a World Cup finals appearance 64 years in the making for Cymru.

If you'd like to occupy your mind, here are some pieces to recommend.

• The evolution of Wales captain Gareth Bale
• Wales fans' rise from counterculture to mainstream
• Wales boss Robert Page and the valleys football factory

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium

Iran's players have just come out to warm up and they're greeted by a huge roar from their fans.

Loads have made the relatively short journey to Qatar. As was the case against the USA, Wales supporters will be outnumbered today.

But history tells us they'll make themselves heard.

Kath Morgan
Former Wales defender on BBC Radio Cymru

I thought we'd see Brennan Johnson start, I think he deserves it. Harry Wilson has got a lot to prove today.

And the boys in the back have got to be on it. Joe Rodon wasn't at his best on Monday so they'll have to make big improvements.

Nathan Blake
Former Wales striker on BBC Radio Wales

No surprise that Kieffer Moore starts, without a platform to play off it sort of threw everything out of sync for Wales and that first half was arguably the worst I've seen them play in any game for the last six or seven years.

I'd expect a much better performance, a 90 minute performance for Wales today.