In the lead-up to Wales‘ matchup with England, a team that Rob Page has referred to as a “beatable” foe, Gareth Bale does not feel that he has any additional burdens on his shoulders.
Wales will leave the World Cup early for the first time since 1958 if they lose to England on Tuesday and hope that Iran and the United States draw in the other Group B game.
The Dragons, who lost to Iran 2-0 after drawing with the USA 1-1, will also move on to the knockout round thanks to an unlikely 4-0 victory over their fierce rivals.
Bale was crucial to Wales‘ achievement in their successful bids to qualify for both Euro 2016 and Euro 2020, which put an end to their protracted wait to compete on the international level.
But the Los Angeles FC forward is hoping to bounce back from the Iran loss with a win against England in what might be his final tournament appearance for Wales.
“We’re disappointed in the results and performance so far but that’s football,” he said at Monday’s pre-match news conference. “This is a World Cup and it’s not easy.
“We’ll always give 100 per cent and we want to try to make things better. The last few days we’ve been working hard and hopefully things turn around for us now.
“We were hurting after the Iran game and the next day. Everyone was really quiet but we have characters in the squad and the energy is high again.
“We’re in good spirits for this next match. This is tournament football and we have to go again.”
Bale scored his side’s only goal of Qatar 2022 so far, a late penalty against the USA, but he has had the fewest touches of the ball of any Wales player in both matches.
The 33-year-old has managed only two shots, one of those being his spot-kick effort, but he insists his nation’s hopes against England do not rest solely on him.
“I don’t feel an added responsibility. We’re a team and nation who work hard for each other and we must deliver as a team, not one person,” he said.
“We’ve been working hard these last couple days. We would have loved to have been winning but the reality is football is hard, but we’ve been keeping our spirits high.”
Wales had never before lost a single game in any of their big tournament appearances, but over the years they have struggled against English neighbors.
In fact, Wales has lost all six of their previous matches against England, scoring just once (a free-kick by Bale in a 2-1 loss in the Euro 2016 group stage) while giving up 11 goals.
However, boss Page is confident his team can break that dreadful streak in a game that Wales absolutely must win if they are to have any chance of extending their stay in Qatar.
“This tournament has shown anyone’s beatable – of course England are beatable,” Page said. “They’ve got a wonderful pool of players, but we must show what we’re capable of.”
Echoing the views of his manager, Bale said: “Absolutely. We’ve done our homework and had meetings, which I’m sure they’ve also done. It’s going to be a difficult game.
“We know England are one of the favourites and we’re under no illusions. There’s been a few shocks already and there’s no reason we can’t do the same.”
Wales enter Tuesday’s game winless in seven matches, which is their worst run without victory since between May 2003 and November 2003.