The Wales coach, Chris Coleman, has warned England that Gareth Bale will relish taking on his former Premier League opponents in next summer’s European Championship in France.
Coleman had said before Saturday’s draw that he wanted to avoid the distraction of facing England but having been pitted against them in Lens in Group B, he is now looking forward to the all-British clash with anticipation.
“Knowing Baley, knowing his mentality, he will take it in his stride. He always wants to perform for Wales, he knows how important he is and the way we play and this is our first tournament for a long, long time,” said Coleman of the first Welsh side to qualify for a major finals since 1958.
“He knows he has the capacity to turn a game on its head. If he is on fire, he will score a goal no matter who he is playing against. There is a lot of pressure on him as well. Because of his mentality he will take all of this in his stride.”
Coleman said that Bale’s experience in Madrid since becoming the world’s most expensive player would stand him in good stead next summer. “He has been in Madrid and it is a goldfish bowl. He is used to having that sort of pressure,” he said.
“Every time he comes back from Madrid with Wales you could see him growing, maturing. He is a lot different now than he was three years ago, I can assure you of that.”
Coleman conceded there would now be huge pressure on Wales to get a result in their first match against Slovakia if they want to qualify. England play Russia in their opener on the same day, 11 June. “The pressure will be on us to get something in that first game because we know what is coming next. We have three games we have to perform in – it is not a case of saving something for the next one.”
The Wales coach, whose side qualified by finishing second behind Belgium, said the draw would put as much pressure on England as his side. “Everyone was asking me for my reasons for not wanting England, but it was not because of the fear we wouldn’t or couldn’t get a result, it was what came with it,” he said. “Luckily it is not the first game. I am excited and it will be great. The game will be fantastic.”
Coleman and Hodgson have known one another since they briefly crossed paths at Blackburn, when the former was a player and the latter a coach. “I have a lot of respect for Roy. I worked with him when I was a player – an excellent coach,” he said. “I have been in this industry, on this side, for 15 years and for him to do what he has done and the length of time, you have to be pretty special. He is a good guy as well.”
Coleman was sold by Blackburn before Hodgson got the chance to see him play but the England manager said they had become friends since. “I don’t even remember if he actually did any training sessions with us, he was sold on even before I got a chance to see him. He doesn’t hold that against me,” he said.
“I think we share a love, of course, and an appreciation of Fulham Football Club which was good to both of us in Chris as a player and manager and me as a manager.”
The Republic of Ireland coach, Martin O’Neill, meanwhile, said he was “morose” after landing Italy, Sweden and Belgium in the draw and believes his side will have to explode out of the blocks in their opening match against Sweden to stand a chance of going through.
