Reply With QuoteYou're more deserving of "Ankles" than Carl.Originally Posted by Wales-Bales
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Well we have more Irish players than Welsh players in our squad?I think you need to elaborate a bit more on this
You're more deserving of "Ankles" than Carl.
Football is about opinions. You have yours and I have mine, and time will tell who was right. At least I stick to the topic without getting personal!
It's laughable to suggest that Ampadu is our second best player. He's good and he could be very good but Ramsey starts for a top 6 side. We suffered in the first half because our front 4 were so far up the pitch and we tried to play it out from the back, so that Smith and Allen were isolated in midfield. It worked better in the second half as Lawrence and Wilson joined Brooks in coming deeper to get the ball. Ampadu might very well turn out to be as good as you think he is now but he's not there yet.
Not the best match but thought the young team did well and put in a very determined performance.
Just feel at times the tempo isn't there, particularly when playing teams that sit off. I get a point would have been decent so perhaps we didn't need to show much urgency but feel that if we had passed even a little quicker and with more risk we could have scored more.
Overall a much better second half.
It's hard to know exactly how good some of these younger players are as in many cases we have sort of artificially inflated their standing in the game far beyond what their clubs are currently offering.
I have been impressed though and even if one or two go onto be good performers in a top league then it's all worth it.
We are talking about Wales, not Arsenal. They have different functional requirements.
As The Other Bob said in his match report, the average age of the front 4 was 21. With that in mind, the hesitant start was understandable, but it had to be done. It was a huge test for players, and now we are in a better place going forward.
We missed Ramsey more than Ampadu last night. Nobody was linking the midfield to the attack, which is what he does best. Allen played the deepest lying midfield role well last night. I'd be much more concerned if Wales missed Davies, Hennessey, Allen, Ramsey and obviously Bale than Ampadu. I might include Mepham in that considering Chester's rather alarming drop off in form.
Ok I get your point, Ampadu is our 7th best player, which makes his Man Of The Match performances even more impressive!
I must have dreamt about all this linkup play then, not to mention all the defensive work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5gvsbzqrRI
fantastic result last night for the team and management. There were a few issues first half but Giggs and Roberts sorted them out half time and we could have won by more. Tyler Roberts was offside a lot first half and not arching his runs while Lawrence and Wilson were too static, this all changed second half and we got our rewards.
Hennessey annoys me with his positioning for back passes and seems to stand on the byline instead of his 6 yard line this causes panic for the midfielder who comes short (this time it was Smith, Ramsey in the home game) and puts the team 10 yards deeper, he needs to watch Ederson.
Davies MOFM for me with his forward runs. Connor Roberts and Brooks partnership on the right looks lethal and hopeful Bale and Davies can cause the same problem on the left. Lawrence and Tylor Roberts to fight for the centre forward position against Denmark.
You’ve got to admit Ramsey doesn’t suit those dreadlocks 🤪
Maybe this is worthy of a seperate thread but I was just wondering how the rest of you feel about players born outside wales representing the national team?
On the one hand I feel that international rules for citizenship are what they are and if your grandparent/s are of a certain nationality you can get citizenship for that reason. A lot of balkan countries do it with swiss nationals and the french with north african countries so why not us.
On the other hand, I have to admit to feeling a little bit got at when people level things like “ x number of english born players” and “You only get the english rejects”.
Personally I feel like grandparents who you might never have met is stretching it a little. I feel a lot more comfortable when they qualify through parent/s.
This is not a dig and I realise I have no authourity to question the nationality that someone identifies with. If they feel it, they feel it.
Personally I don't react to the digs in a negative way. Talksport may have said a few things after the Euros but as far as I remember Ashley Williams was first spotted when playing for Stockport County so it was a Swansea and Welsh education than helped develop his potential, and he says there are no questions about his kids cause they are definitely Welsh. Mostl dual-qualified players now are spotted in their teens (if not younger) so again go through a Welsh footballing education which develops that sense of identity and connection.
Historically, admittedly, there are examples of players in their mid/late twenties who have been picked because they fit a need and until that moment they probably don't consider themselves Welsh. Not so much a fan of that but cannot rule them out if they come to Wales later on in life. I guess you would have to have an honest conversation about whether they want to embrace that part of their identity or whether it's just cause whoever it is hasn't come knocking.
Think about Wales' greatest players. Meredith, Keenor, Ford, the Charles brothers, Morgan, Tapscott, Allchurch, Jones, Thomas, Thomas,Davies, Medwin, Hennessey, Sherwood, Flynn, England, James, Phillips,Toshack, Mahoney, Nicholas, Southall, Melville, Coleman, Davies, Ratcliffe, Hughes, Rush, Saunders, Giggs, Horne, Robinson, Speed, Savage, Hartson, Pembridge, Jones, Bowen, Gabbidon, Collins, Page, Koumas, Bale, Ramsey, Hennessey, Bellamy, Blake, Davies, Ledley, Allen, Davies.All born in Wales.
The only "greats" not on the list of Welsh born players are David Phillips, Earnie, Williams, Page, Robson Kanu, Vokes, Chester and maybe Simon Church. All of the world famous players in our history are Welsh born and bred.
I can never tell if Wales Bales is on a wind up or actually serious
I wouldn’t put Earnie in the same bracket really as he was brought up from a young age in Wales. He’s a welshman in every sense of the word.
True enough
I think everyone is in agreement that he put in a MOTM performance in that game. How did he do in the next game?
I thought he did ok. It's not his fault the defence took the day off. The flair players up front weren't their usual selves either. All in all I would imagine it was a good experience for the young lad, a glimpse of the next level and what needs to be improved. Hopefully he will go out on loan in January to a decent side, as it's a bit of a jump going from playing U23 games one day to Top 10 international teams the next.
There is an element of truth in everything I say
Not much of a jump for someone who is currently the country's second best player though surely?
Who were the stand out Welsh players against Denmark? I can't remember anybody having a particularly good game. Ampadu certainly wasn't intimidated by the Danish players, and the penalty decision was harsh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mArGrK4InOQ
I don't think many people are making a judgment on who our top two players are at the moment on the basis of a couple of international games though.
He's never been outclassed in any game I've seen him play in. Let's see what the next few games bring, but I think I already know what the outcome is going to be.
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