Bale insists he will be fine to face Belgians in big group finale
GARETH Bale ruled out any injury fears as his 100th appearance for Wales ended after 45 minutes.
Bale appeared confident of lining up against Belgium tomorrow despite his landmark appearance being cut short.
The Real Madrid forward was making his first appearance since September 8 following a hamstring tear.
“It was always the plan to play 45,” Bale told Sky Sports after becoming the second Welshman to win 100 caps.
“I’ve obviously been out for two months and it was always planned that if we were up in the game, I would come off and try to get ready for Tuesday and see how I feel.
“I was happy to get the reception before the game and enjoy the occasion.
“As much as I would have loved to have come off to an ovation, it would have been a bit greedy.
“The team is the most important thing.
“I’m happy to be back. It was a hard road to come back from injury and it was well worth it.
“From the first whistle we knew we had to be on it as it could come down to goal difference. It was a great performance tonight and we’re delighted.
“We were just focused on this game first but it is a big game now on Tuesday. We recover now and get ready for that, the big one.”
Aaron Ramsey’s double took him on to 20 for Wales, past Craig Bellamy and into sixth place on the all-time scoring list.
“We did what we wanted to do,” said Juventus midfielder Ramsey.
“We wanted to be on the front foot early in the game and we managed to do that. We will now take that into Tuesday, which will be a massive game.
“We’re just excited that we’re in a position now to finish second. We’ve had some great battles with Belgium over the years and hopefully we can have another one on Tuesday.”