The Dragons finally qualified for the summer tournament with a degree of ease after such a long wait and they’ve picked up two wins over Russian Federation and Slovakia to top Group B meaning they have been handed a tie with fellow United Kingdom outfit Northern Ireland on Saturday afternoon.
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“They are very defensive, shut up shop and make it hard to score”.
Williams went down in clear pain towards the end of the momentous last 16 triumph over Northern Ireland after a disgusting collision with team-mate Jonny Williams.
That was the third own goal of the tournament, more than in any previous European Championships.
And ex-Manchester United defender Evans feels that with Bale leading their line, Wales will be able to beat Hungary or Belgium in the quarter-finals and reach the last four of a major tournament for the first time.
“We have turned up and we have shown our team spirit, our passion”, Bale said. We have to plan for the next game, whoever it is. I am disappointed in the manner that they scored. Over the course of 90 minutes they had three attempts on target to one from Wales, but as the second half progressed it never felt that it was anything less than a job of containment.
The only goal threat by the Welsh before the slightly fortuitous breakthrough came from a free kick from Bale.
It was a game Bale branded “ugly”, and few of the fans in the French capital or watching around the world would disagree.
Not at all. The teams looked like the first-time European finalists they are, with little quality in a cagey encounter more suited to the lower leagues of English soccer. We showed a lot of heart, a lot of courage.
Wales boss Chris Coleman claims that his side deserved the fortune that came their way during the 1-0 win over Northern Ireland in Paris.
Northern Ireland crowded Bale every time he had the ball, yet the Real Madrid forward still found space to deliver a cross which Ramsey poked at harmlessly.
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“It’s a very, very cruel way to lose a game and I don’t think we deserved to lose it with a goal of that nature”.
