The best is yet to come as Williams enjoys living the dream
FOR someone who has just turned 21, Neco Williams has already had an extraordinary career – and indeed season. The best, however, is yet to come. In the coming weeks, the gifted Wales star could help fire his country to the World Cup, win the Championship with Fulham and watch his Liverpool colleagues celebrate a potential quadruple of Premier League title, Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup.
Williams may be watching from afar, but he’s heavily invested in anything Jurgen Klopp’s team do as well. He’s played in the Premier for them this season before going on loan to Fulham, starred in European wins over AC Milan, Atletico Madrid and Porto and also featured three times on Liverpool’s march to winning the League Cup.
Throw in a league title medal with Liverpool a couple of years back, helping Fulham win promotion just a few days ago, plus a key role in Wales’s World Cup play-off triumph over Austria, and no wonder he feels in football dreamland.
“I’ve won the Premier League and hopefully I can go on to win the Championship next,” he said.
“I have gained a lot of experience in a short amount of time. I’ve gone from starting a Champions League game against AC Milan, and beating them 2-1, to playing Barnsley, so it’s been a valuable and varied experience at such a young age.
“If Wales can see this through by getting to the World Cup and Liverpool can win that quadruple, wow how incredible that would be.”
With 18 caps already to his name, Williams has the potential to become one of the Wales greats. He’s far too modest to suggest that, of course, but just look at what he offers to the national team. He can play right or left with equal aplomb, he’s quick, defends expertly, but also wows fans with surging runs forward to help create or score goals himself.
“I think it just happens naturally when you look at how modern fullbacks have developed,” he says.
“They’re not like your standard Gary Neville kind of full-back today, I suppose. The best around, players like Trent Alexander Arnold, Andy Robertson, Joao Cancelo of Manchester City, are like midfielders or wingers trying to get assists and score, rather than just defend.
“It’s an exciting role because you feel as important as any other player on the pitch.”
Indeed, having players like Williams, Harry Wilson, Dan James and Kieffer Moore next to Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey is what gives Wales an even greater cutting edge than Chris Coleman’s Euro rampaging side, offering real hope that the Class of 2022 can qualify for the World Cup after the agonising failures of so many of their predecessors.
An epic night awaits on June 5 against either Scotland or Ukraine at the same Cardiff City Stadium venue where two Gareth Bale goals against Austria set up a mouth-watering playoff final.
“It’s always amazing when we’re playing there in front of our own fans, but that game was on another level again,” Williams says of the Austria win.
“The fans singing the anthem is a moment I will always remember, their backing throughout the match. When we’re playing out there we feel like the Welsh fans are our 12th man. That gives us the boost to go on and win these big games.
“These are the matches we look forward to, every single one of us dreams of going to the World Cup. We’re 100 per cent aware of what’s gone on before, how many years it is since Wales qualified, so it would be a massive achievement.
“World Cups don’t come around that often so we need to take our chance and do everything we can to qualify – not just for ourselves and the staff, but for the whole Welsh nation. We’ve got one job out of the way so far, beating Austria, and we’ve got the final to go.
“It’ll be one of the biggest games in everyone’s career, one match away from reaching the World Cup.
“We know it’s going to be hard. Ukraine and Scotland are great teams in their own right with world-class players, but I feel we have the selfbelief, confidence, chemistry and bond to go on and win that game.
“The fact that we’re at home again is a massive factor. We know 30,000plus Welsh fans inside that stadium, indeed an entire nation, will be fully behind us, being incredibly loud, motivating us to go on and win.
“We want to give it back to those fans, put a smile on their faces. And hopefully if we do qualify it will help inspire others to get playing football.”
That last bit is a subject close to Williams, who spoke to us moments after making his debut at a Mcdonald’s Fun Football session.
Mcdonald’s is giving thousands of youngsters aged five to 11 the chance to start their football journey and make their Fun Football debuts across 21 centres in Wales.
“It was just brilliant seeing so many youngsters, girls and boys, playing, running around, laughing, and enjoying their football,” he said.
“The free sessions are run all over the country and making football more accessible can only be a good thing for the future of Welsh football.”
It’s not so far back that Williams was the age of the youngsters he’s just been coaching, but an awful lot has happened during the intervening years.
It started in earnest in October 2019 when Williams made his Liverpool debut, a League Cup game against Arsenal when he had an immediate impact by setting up a last-gasp Divock Origi equaliser in a 5-5 draw, before Jurgen Klopp’s men went on to win on penalties.
Liverpool are understandably fabulous as far as Williams is concerned, but we started this chat with Wales and we must end it with Wales, given what is just around the corner.
There is important club football to be dealing with before June comes around, but already the World Cup play-off final is on the radar.
“It means absolutely everything to play for the badge on the shirt. Every time you step out on to the pitch in that shirt is exciting,” says Williams.
“I’ve always had the Wales kits when I was little and to be able to wear one of the senior ones these days is an incredible feeling.
“It’s even more special because my mates support different clubs, but whatever happens they are each Wales fans so they can watch the game together and support me.
“Given the age I’m at, I’ve already gained a lot of experience, won a few medals so far. Hopefully there will be more to come – as well as the main aim of playing in a World Cup.”
An entire Welsh nation will be echoing those sentiments in the coming weeks.
■ Neco Williams is encouraging youngsters aged five to 11 to make their grassroots debuts this spring. The free sessions, led by FAW accredited coaches, are tailored to all abilities, and designed to help make football more accessible to everyone. Supporting and encouraging participation is the foundation of Mcdonald’s 20-year commitment to grassroots football in Wales. Sign up to your nearest free Mcdonald’s Fun Football session now at mcdonalds. co.uk/football