Permutations How Wales can reach round of 16

If Wales win they are sure to qualify. They will be group winners if Slovakia draw with or beat England. Should England beat Slovakia, Wales would be runners-up.

Draw If they draw against Russia, they will be runners-up in the group should Slovakia fail to beat England. If Slovakia win, they would be third and have to wait to be sure of their qualifying fate.

Defeat If they lose and England do not win, they would be bottom of the group and out. If they lose and England win, they would be third and in with a chance.

in each of Wales’s two group games, he is not satisfied with his performances so far from open play. Manager Chris Coleman was especially unhappy on Thursday with how his team were so dominated in possession by England and one serious consideration tomorrow is to energise the central midfield by starting Leicester City’s Andy King.

Joe Allen is still available after hurting his calf against England but his recent lack of match fitness might make a second start in four days unrealistic. “I can do better,” said Bale. “We’ve spo- ken about moving the ball better and, if we don’t keep the ball, it’s difficult to do what I try to do best. We’ve defended amazingly but, if we can get the ball down and play more, hopefully I can influence it a bit more.

“But I couldn’t care if I perform my worst in every single game. It’s not about my performances. They don’t matter at all. It’s about the team and us getting to the next round. Individually, whether you score goals or win awards, it’s irrelevant. I’d take playing rubbish every single game if it meant we could go as far as we can.”

The prospect of facing Russia at such a pivotal moment in the tournament has evoked memories of Wales’s European Championship play-off defeat in 2003. Bale was 14 at the time and, with his dad Frank, was among the supporters that night at the Millennium Stadium as Russia prevailed 1-0. “I still remember it, but that was the past and this is now,” said Bale. “No one’s even thinking of that experience, we want to go in with a fresh mind.”

Bale also says that there are “no thoughts at all” about the prospect of being eliminated tomorrow and all the scheduling by the Football Association of Wales, including a family day for the players on Tuesday, is for the best case scenario.

“Our fate is in our own hands and, if you’d given us this at the start of the tournament, we would have taken it,” said Bale. “The nation is behind us; reaching the last 16 would mean everything to us. We’ll try to embrace the occasion.”