Bale Says Welsh Team Ready And Raring To Play

‘For me it is probably the stand-out game in the group stages, but there is no pressure on us because they believe they can beat us.

Yet those who believe Wales is totally reliant on its totem can point to how it has fared without him in subsequent friendlies, of which he has played only half an hour in total.

“We have got to remember what got us here”, said the man who has taken Wales to a first major tournament in 58 years.

“To get pegged back, and for a spell we were against the ropes, but we dug deep like we always do and it’s all about digging and grinding”.

The Welsh grabbed a 2-1 victory over Slovakia thanks to Hal Robson-Kanu’s dramatic victor. We all work hard as one unit.

“We were just lacking some luck, because they scored a goal where the player didn’t hit the ball properly, but unfortunately for us, it went in”. We have a good team, whenever you pull the shirt on to play for your country you give it everything and I’m no different.

“Right now he’s in great form, he is physically very fit and I’m a Real Madrid fan – I watch every match of Real Madrid”. If we are not doing the job he is quite calm about it but most of the other times, if we are doing well, he is quite emotional.

Bale was then quizzed on which former Welsh global he would like to add to the current squad.

“We are really excited because a lot of time has passed since we qualified [for the 2010 World Cup, Slovakia’s only previous major tournament] and we can’t wait”.

This is also the first trip for Slovakia, and while their campaign was quieter than Wales’ headline-grabbing effort, Hamsik and his side earned huge wins over Spain and Ukraine in their group.

Adam Nemec went close to a late equaliser after getting across Ashley Williams, but his header came back off the post with Ward beaten, leaving Wales to celebrate.

“Once you become the most expensive player in the world, you’re playing for Real Madrid, and you’ve won two Champions Leagues in three years, you become used to it”.

Though Bale was the focus of much of Slovakia’s attention, it was a substitute who actually secured the team’s victory.

“He’s devastated to miss the first game, but we were not in a position where we could take a chance with him”.