Under the watchful eye of Swansea City head coach Russell Martin and the club's chief executive Julian Winter, Joe Allen features on the big stage for the umpteenth time in his career.
Rain hammers down on the Cardiff City Stadium turf relentlessly as Wales bid to end their 64-year wait to reach a World Cup. The hosts sit in a 5-2-3 defensive shape as Ukraine settle in possession early on. Allen has Wales' first touch on the ball, and his second is a challenge to retain possession, but his third strikes fear into the Red Wall.
Referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz's issues the 32-year-old a yellow card just 112 seconds into the game for a foul on Taras Stepanenko. It now leaves him walking a tightrope for the remainder of the game, and conditions aren't exactly conducive for routine tackling.
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After surviving a scare when Oleksandr Zinchenko's quickly taken free-kick was disallowed, Wales eventually settle, and it's the tiniest of touches from Allen that helps keep the hosts on the front foot in the fifth minute. He then tees up Ben Davies from another Ukraine clearance to ensure Rob Page's men go forward, not backwards, meaning Wales, following a nervy start, can show signs of calm.
Minute number six and Allen mops up from a cleared corner to lay the ball back to Connor Roberts who curls it straight back into the Ukraine box. Wales are now on the front foot, and it's largely as a result of Allen's ability to spot danger. When part of the attack, the midfielder continues to show his quality with a well executed first time pass from the halfway line to Roberts on the right which gives the Burnley man the chance to threaten going into the final third.
Defensively, Allen continues to play his part, charging across his own box to help Neco Williams as Ukraine threaten from the right flank. Even after shifting to the left side of Aaron Ramsey, the free agent remains alert to issues on the other side as he bursts back to get goal side of Zinchenko which forces the visitors wide, thus decreasing the likelihood of Wayne Hennessey being tested.
Back on the right, Allen intercepts and stamps his authority on proceedings by instructing Joe Rodon - who survived a scare after being charged down moments earlier - to move before playing a safe ball back to Hennessey. "I'm glad Joe took responsibility for that over Rodon," says Malcolm Allen on S4C's coverage of the game. "A chance to get the breath back and re-organise."
A slightly different tact in the 15th minute sees Allen use his strength to position his body to block off Ruslan Malinovskyi which allows the ball to run through to Neco Williams who gets Wales back on the attack. It's a softer example of the "dark arts" Gareth Bale calls for from his players after the 2-1 defeat to Netherlands in the Nations League three days after the win over Ukraine.
Allen starts to fully show his class in possession but remains unselfish by dropping deeper to cover Ethan Ampadu when the right centre-back charges forwards. It's yet another example of the vital discipline Allen has in abundance.
The midway point of the first-half approaches, and Allen this time stretches to nudge Ramsey's pass on to Roberts after Ukraine's midfield pressed in an attempt to win possession in an encouraging position. Crisis averted. Neco Williams and Rodon both put in firm tackles before Allen intervenes, performing a slick 180 degree turn to shake off Zinchenko and restart another attack. In the same phase of play, Allen plays a one-two with Bale before sending Ramsey free on the right, but his sumptuous cross isn't met.
Oleksandr Petrakov's men up the tempo, and, for once, Allen is caught after slipping, with Zinchenko drilling goalwards having dispossessed the Welshman.
The crowd erupts as Andriy Yarmolenko heads Bale's free-kick into his own net in the 34th minute, but, moments after what proved to be the decisive goal, Allen is back on red alert, twice getting stuck in to keep Wales on the ball deep in their own half.
Minute 38, and Allen does what he does best. Ukraine look to attack after robbing Daniel James of the ball, but Allen makes a crucial 10-yard sprint before sliding to win possession and drawing a foul from Malinovskyi in the process. "Brilliant from Joe Allen," says Owain Tudur Jones. "The reality is, after getting a yellow card so early, the tendency as a player in his position is to sit back a little bit and worry. But he's still on the front foot and eager to win possession for his team." Malcolm Allen says: "He understands the importance of his responsibility to win the ball back there."
But the biggest scare of the match comes in the 40th minute. Allen intercepts a cross, but after dallying on the ball, the Swansea academy product catches the foot of Yarmolenko after being dispossessed, but even a VAR check isn't enough for the visitors to receive a penalty, much to the relief of those in red, and Allen in particular.
Just 22 seconds of the second-half have elapsed, but Allen remains sharp and dispossesses Viktor Tsygankov. Ramsey's desire to demonstrate his attacking qualities was fully evident in the opening eight minutes of the second-half, and while it almost reaped maximum rewards as he was presented with a chance to bulge the net in front of the Canton End, Allen's discipline remained key to Wales.
After a nibble, Allen's sheer determination wins him the ball off Zinchenko to get Wales back on the front foot. "The yellow card doesn't worry Allen. He knows how far he can go," says commentator Nic Parry.
With an hour gone, counter attacks become increasingly effective for the Red Dragons, and Daniel James is denied a shot on goal from a swift move that starts with Allen's positioning being key to him winning the ball back on the edge of his own box.
As was twice the case in the opening half, Allen does well to turn away from two players with one touch, but he's then dispossessed in a dangerous area. Fortunately, Ben Davies is on hand to bail him out. Nevertheless, Allen sticks to the task. Frustrated by his lack of success against Allen, Zinchenko drifts in a bid to have a greater impact in the final third.
Ukraine start to take risks, but Allen remains present. Rodon is on hand to head away Zinchenko's free-kick and Allen beats Serhiy Sydorchuk to the loose ball, winning a throw-in off the freshly-introduced Ukrainian in the process. "You're talking about a player who is making sure the players around him lift their levels once again," says Malcolm Allen.
Nerves start to jangle as the game approaches the 80-minute mark, but Allen beats Zinchenko to the ball in the air twice in the space of six seconds to ensure the 25-year-old is unable to bring down the ball and cause a threat. His communication throughout is essential. Switching markers with a simple pointing gesture and a yell to his nearest team-mate time and time again ensures Wales are well organised to force Ukraine across the pitch rather than allow them to move up it.
With the game now incredibly loose as the visitors desperately push for an equaliser, any clearance will do, as Allen demonstrates when he hacks away from his own box, but even that comes after he races back 30 yards into his own penalty area to intercept Mykhailo Mudryk's cross in the first place. And it was to be his final act as the whistle was eventually blown after 95 minutes and 56 seconds of play.
The role Allen played in limiting the impact of Zinchenko - who days earlier ran Scotland's midfield ragged in the play-off semi-final - can not be underestimated. And while not flawless, Allen's performance will have only enhanced Russell Martin's desire to bring the midfielder back to Swansea.
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He ended the contest having made two tackles, three interceptions and two clearances. His pass accuracy of 86.2% was bettered only by Daniel James while Aaron Ramsey was the only Wales player to make more than Allen's total of 29 passes.
The hope now is that Swansea's owners sanction a move that will see Allen wearing the jersey of his boyhood club next season, because his remarkable effort in the red of Wales once again backed up Russell Martin's claims that he is "perfect" for the club.
