In the UK and also in various corners of Europe, Wales is often said to be “Courtyard of England”. It is true that they are closely related and have similar customs, but when it comes to sports, all of that vanishes (except in the Olympic Games which compete under the same flag, the British).
But if it is rugby (above all) or football, there is no doubt about the rivalry. In the sport of the oval ball it is a true classic, in the most universal of regulated games it depends on the circumstances of each one. England is usually the main protagonist; Wales always follows in the footsteps of a miracle that leads them to the World Cup or the European Championships.
And that time came for Los Dragones (dragons, in English; and Dreigiau, in Welsh). After more than six decades, the team that usually wears red will enter the biggest event in world football. Wales only participated in a World Cup in 1958. And it didn’t go badly: he finished sixth in Swedenon that occasion when Brazil won its first title and showed a young Pele before the eyes of the planet.
On that occasion, Wales were the big revelation of the tournament. In his first, he made it through the round after knocking out the runner-up in 1954, the immense Hungary of Puskas and Kocsis (who were no longer part of this edition of Sweden), in the first play-off round. They drew 1-1 against Hungary, 1-1 against Mexico and 0-0 with the locals. In the playoffs they beat the Magyars and went to the quarter-finals.
In that case he had the impossible: eliminate Brazil Wales did a good job. He went on the break with a goalless draw. But in the 21st minute of the second half a certain Pelé – small and smart – scored the only goal of the match. Nobody could blame that titanic Wales for anything … Now, in Qatar, the time will come to show itself again. Looking in the mirror of that campaign can be a good idea.
The technician: Rob Page, the fireman behind the “Giggs scandal”
There is a fundamental date in the history of this team that wants to continue making history: November 3, 2020. Ryan Giggs – all-time idol at Manchester United and in the Welsh national team – was the manager who invited us to dream of Qatar. He had an assistant that cameras didn’t usually focus on, Rob Page.
That day a milestone occurred in the life of the group: the coach was accused “perpetrating a multitude of acts of physical and psychological violence” against his ex-partner Kate Greville, according to the statement of the prosecutor Peter Wright in the trial started today in August of this year in that British city
The case of gender-based violence is dealt with by Judge Hilary Manley. Giggs, during the previous hearings, denied the allegations against him: “Isolation, contempt, humiliation, harassment, degradation and mistreatment”.
It was not a good scenario to face. But Page, who has worked for the various Welsh national teams since 2017, has taken over. He had been a footballer for various British teams, he played in the Premier League with Watford. And for the country’s team he played 41 games. He was a tenacious defender. Now he has become a persistent coach. He had nothing else.
And so, with that footprint, he put together a team based on context and circumstances. And it went well. Or very well: promoted to Serie A in the Nations Cup; he reached the round of 16 of the European Championship (he was eliminated by Denmark) and in the Qualifiers he passed second in the difficult Group E (it was also made up of Belgium, the Czech Republic, Belarus and Estonia). In the Repechage they eliminated Austria 2-1 and in the decisive match they beat Ukraine. And Page, in its own simple, no-frills way, brought Wales back to the big stage. Nothing less.
The figure: Gareth Bale plays his last golden bullet
Gareth Bale has speeded up his presentation letter in football. From the days of Southampton and, above all, from his performances at Tottenham Hotspur. He was considered the fastest player in the world until the arrival of Kylian Mbappé.
Now, GPS and drone times, footballers’ speeds are measured. How much does it run? How fast is your heart beating? How much liquid do you lose in each section of the game? The Bundesliga is one of the most rigorous spaces in this data collection. According to them, in 2020 the top 3 in the category consisted of: Mbappé, Bale and Adama Traoré Diarra, the Catalan of Malian blood who now plays for Wolverhampton. Therefore, Bale was already over three decades old and was competing on that podium with two under 23s.
Eduardo Galeano wrote about speed: “Seeing him play was worth a respite and more. When Pele was on the run, he went through his opponents like a knife. When he stopped, the rivals got lost in the mazes he drew his legs. When he jumped, he went up in the air as if the air were a ladder. “
But the Welsh striker’s career, one of the best in his country’s history, wasn’t fueled by speed alone. Real Madrid in 2013 made him the most expensive footballer in the world by buying him for 120 million dollars. Today, with number eleven (the one he likes best), he plays in the Los Angeles MLS. human resources
And so, at supersonic speed, he didn’t stop getting titles: He has won 16 trophies (including five Champions League and three FIFA Club World Cup). He has also won numerous individual awards (among which he was chosen as “Player of the Year” by the Welsh Federation, FAW), flirted with the Ballon d’Or and is now the captain and top scorer of his team. All reasons to be a happy athlete. However, they say so never seen a smile as big as the one he showed after the one-nil victory against Ukraine, in the repechage to go to Qatar. The goal, of course, was converted by this Cardiff-born man. It may not be the last golden bullet.
The team: a quartet of experience to satisfy the desire
If the goal of the table was transformed by Bale, the zero in the own goal before the repeated attacks of Ukraine It was the work of the other superhero of Wales’ return to the World Cup: huge goalkeeper Wayne Robert Hennessey, currently in Nottingham Forest. Its nearly two meters was a wall for its Eastern European rival.
At 35, had the most notable performance of his career, in which he has already defended the Wales goal in more than 100 games. Together with Bale and Chris Gunter they compete game after game with a narrow margin of difference for who he has played the most. Now, on the eve of his World Cup debut, on November 21 against the United States, in Al Rayyan, defender Gunter is in the lead (with 109, three more than the goalkeeper and five more than the attacker).
The experience of the three plus that provided by midfielder Aaron Ramsey (31, sub-captain, second best scorer in the squad, player of Nice) They are the foundations of a team that has remained undefeated throughout 2021who accepted the Repechage for 2020, won it and, suddenly, has forgotten the footprint of a hard-hitting team and has just added one point out of 12 in the UEFA Nations Cup. And now, in September, they will have to beat Belgium and Poland to avoid relegation to Serie B in the most recent of the European national team competitions.
Source: Clarin
