WALES star Gareth Bale aims to land a knockout blow on Northern Ireland at Euro 2016 today, after being taunted by boxer Carl Frampton in the build-up to the tournament’s second Battle of Britain. As for Northern Ireland, captain Steven Davis will look to crush the hopes of the Welsh side.
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No longer a soccer sideshow, these small British nations will take center stage in the French capital on Saturday.
In contrast to Wales manager approach, Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill wants his side to play from heart.
Jonathan Williams’ introduction also gave Wales an extra attacking edge as manager Chris Coleman attempted to release the grip that Northern Ireland had on the contest, even if they were creating little themselves.
It is a sign that the 26-year-old has matured and is putting his three years at Real Madrid, a club where every move is scrutinised, to good effect when it comes to worldwide duty.
“Ronaldo is their main player, the aim is not to allow them to show how strong he is, we have to limit him”, said Cacic. “It is a moral victory for us”.
Northern Ireland have recorded the lowest possession average so far at EURO 2016 (28.5%).
“I want my team to play with loads of emotion; I want them to fully understand the significance of the game”, O’Neill said.
“We’ve come through a massive journey”, said the Real Madrid forward, who is the tournament’s joint top scorer with three goals. Let us know what you think of Wales’ prospects in the comments.
Bale broke shortly after and though three white shirts congregated on the Real Madrid forward, his measured cross was nearly flicked past Michael McGovern by Aaron Ramsey. They enjoyed that moment, showing plenty of fighting spirit, helped by a string of fine saves from McGovern, who was instrumental in limiting the damage in a 1-0 defeat by world champions Germany.
Not bad for a goalkeeper who was playing last season for struggling Scottish club Hamilton and is out of contract next week. Consequently, he’s the overwhelming favourite to do the same again, while Kyle Lafferty leads the Northern Ireland lists. He’s very comfortable with the ball at his feet, he’s added that.
But you can not stop one player on a man-to-man basis.
So perhaps the goal which decided matters – and sends Wales through to a quarter-final against either Hungary or Belgium in Lille on Friday – was appropriate as Gareth Bale eventually left his mark on proceedings.
Northern Ireland lost to World Cup holders Germany in their final group stage game, but played a tenacious game and held the mighty Germany side to just a single goal. We will be ready to deal with Gareth Bale. Maybe it is more favorable.
“You’re not guaranteed to get a result”.
Chris Coleman’s squad spent the morning of the match watching a documentary charting the story of Welsh football from the nation’s last appearance at a major tournament, the 1958 World Cup. Should Northern Ireland upset predictions and do that, then the IFA will be €13 million wealthier than a few weeks ago.
Northern Ireland have won none of their last eight games against Wales (D4 L4).
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“We’ve been screaming for this for years, it’s what we want – and I think we’ve got a good team, a really good team”.
