Bale makes Wales return to World Cup after 64 years

Wales has had its golden generation. It was a squad with names that became famous in British football and the Premier League in the 1990s, such as strikers Mark Hughes, Ian Rush, Ryan Giggs and goalkeeper Neville Southall.

They failed where Gareth Bale, 33, succeeded: taking the team to the World Cup.

The player who is at Los Angeles FC (USA), but passed through Tottenham Hotspur (ING) and Real Madrid (ESP), defined it as the best day of his life when his team defeated Ukraine 1-0 to seal the spot in the Qatar World Cup. It was the end of a 64-year wait.

The only time it participated in the competition, Gales was eliminated by Pelé. In his first goal in the Cup, the King of Football hatted the scorer and concluded for the net in a 1-0 victory for the Brazilian team in the quarterfinals. The European team had John Charles, legend of Juventus (ITA), but who did not play in this match because he was injured.

Under Bale’s leadership, Wales reached positions it had never reached before. They eliminated Belgium (which two years later would be third in the Russian Cup) and went to the semifinals of Euro 2016. They lost to Portugal.

“We had the talent to go to the World Cup in the past, but there was always something missing at the decisive moment. There were also fewer spots in contention. at Manchester United (ING) before becoming manager.

In Qatar, the team will play a British classic with England. It will be in the third round and could potentially decide the spot for the round of 16. In addition, in Group B, they will face the United States (the debut, on November 21) and Iran.

The road to ranking was bumpy mainly off the field. The coach was supposed to be Ryan Giggs, the country’s greatest player of all time, but he had to be removed. He is on trial for domestic assault. His assistant Rob Page took over the roster and was hired because of the good results.

In the last Eurocup, last year, he led the team to the round of 16, when he fell to Denmark. Two months ago, he signed a four-year contract extension.

“Everything we’ve played so far has been a learning experience to take us to the World Cup. I hope it’s our peak,” said the coach.

Bale is not the only weapon. In Ben Davies and Aaron Ramsey, Wales has two experienced players in major European tournaments. Although Joe Allen is no longer the same as he was a few years ago, he is still able, given some space, to be creative and annoy opponents, justifying the nickname “Welsh Pirlo” he received when he was at Liverpool.

One of the main offensive weapons should be Daniel James’ speed, especially on the counterattack. Even if he has problems when defining the play, he is a winger with the ability to take advantage of the opponent.

As with other teams, Wales adopts different tactical postures, ranging from 4-3-3 to 4-1-4-1. Page favors a high-pressure system in the attacking field, especially with wingers and midfielders. The big question is how the defense will behave, especially goalkeeper Wayne Hennesse, 35, who is not a starter in his Premier League team, Nottingham Forest.

“I see complete conditions for Wales to go to the round of 16. From there, anything can happen”, evaluated Hughes, in a recent participation in the Sky Sports News program, from England.