Having performed so well, Chris Coleman’s thoughts will now turn to qualifying for the Russian World Cup in a couple of years time.
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“I definitely feel we have more to give, we are still a young team, we all still have our prime to come and hopefully we can keep this confidence up and keep on growing as a team”, he said.
“I don’t think there is any way we won’t build on this and will let this go”, he said.
“They did the whole country proud and I’m glad that I got to see Wales play in a major global tournament”. There’s loads of work to be done with this team.
Talisman Gareth Bale said there were “no regrets” in the aftermath of the 2-0 semi-final defeat to Portugal, writing on Twitter that the players “gave everything” and thanking the fans for their support.
Over 200,000 people were estimated to have lined the streets of Cardiff as Wales’ Euro 2016 squad returned home to a heroes’ welcome.
More than half a century on, the return of the class of 2016 to Cardiff following their unexpected but joyous charge to the semi-finals of the European Championship could not have been more different.
It took them 58 years to qualify for a major worldwide tournament but now as they are there, Wales national football team have taken the world by storm.
The squad was paraded through the streets of Cardiff on an open top bus, before they eventually made their way into the city’s main soccer stadium.
FAW chief executive Jonathan Ford was quoted by the BBC as saying: “The nation really wants to show the boys how impressed they are and how proud they are and I’m sure they will be out in their thousands today”.
“I’m just delighted I was able to help my team by grabbing a couple of assists and that we won it quite comfortably in the end”.
Gareth Bale will go head to head against Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo in the Euro 2016 semi-final clash.
Coleman said: “We’ve now sampled tournament football”.
“We need that little bit of luck, the same hunger and desire and good things will happen”.
The parade started at Cardiff Castle and took over an hour to travel the few miles to Cardiff City Stadium.
Each individual player will be presented to their adoring public and, at the end of the most magical of Welsh sporting summers, Bale admits these are days he will remember well into his dotage.
“To get a welcome like this was incredible”.
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“We knew what we were capable of after getting to France, we said we didn’t want to make the numbers up”.
