Bale blows them away
Wales ace runs riot to keep Euros fever alive
Sealed with a kiss: Bale salutes his second as Wales beat Moldova 4-0 in Cardiff
AFTER the Lord Mayor’s show of Euro 2016, Wales gave a performance last night to indicate more good times lie ahead. Concerns about a comedown against awkward opponents were dispelled. Instead, here was evidence they have hunger for more success.
It is not supposed to be like this for Wales, who have been historically undermined by slip-ups. But they are a different side under Chris Coleman and this was as easy as qualifiers come.
There will be tougher tests, notably Austria in Vienna next month, but a 4-0 victory, their biggest in a competitive fixture since 2003, was the perfect start to their campaign on the road to the World Cup in Russia.
Inevitably, Gareth Bale got in on the act. With Wales already 2-0 up, he could not have wished for a better through ball in the 50th minute — and he had Moldova’s Ion Jardan to thank. A woefully under-hit backpass gave Bale the freedom to race clear and, as goalkeeper Ilie Cebanu advanced, he clipped the ball into the corner.
That moved him to 23 goals and joint-second on the all-time Wales list alongside Ivor Allchurch and Trevor Ford. With the last kick of the game, he edged ahead of them, converting a penalty he had won with typical calm. He is now just four behind Ian Rush and the Liverpool legend’s prediction that Bale will break his record in this campaign has gained credence.
But this was not just about Bale. As in France, it was about team spirit, cohesive thinking and quality. That extended to the stands, where the fans went through the songbook that became familiar throughout June.
In a carnival atmosphere by the end, they requested a wave from Coleman, and applauded Ashley Williams off the field and Hal Robson-Kanu on to it.
‘We knew it was going to be tough, we had to be patient and disciplined,’ said Coleman. ‘We showed we have a good level of professionalism. The guys love playing here when the atmosphere’s like that. We could have scored more. It’s only three points but the first ones are always important.’
Bale believes the display underlined the side’s growing maturity. ‘We have played teams like this in the past and they are difficult to break down,’ he said. ‘We are learning to cope with that kind of play.’
Taking the field 61 days after losing that semi- final to Portugal under
Europe’s glare, this was Wales back to the grind. Moldova set their stall out to defend, as might have been expected of the world’s 165thranked team, and chipped away at Wales — particularly Bale and Joe Allen — with niggly fouls.
To begin with, Wales failed to find the fluency required to break down obdurate opponents. They should have been given a penalty in the sixth minute when Alexandru Dedov launched into a clumsy tackle on Chris Gunter but referee Liran Liany waved away their appeals. It was the first of several curious calls by the Israeli.
Bale had a free-kick within range six minutes later but floated it high and wide, then Joe Ledley’s shot was held easily by Cebanu.
Gradually, though, Wales got more men forward and seven minutes before the interval Moldova cracked.
Predictably, a moment of Bale brilliance was the catalyst, but the opening goal also showed Vokes at his finest.
Receiving possession from Andy King on the right wing, Bale whipped over a cross that homed on to the forehead of Vokes, who shrugged off the close attentions of his marker to power the ball down and in. Having not scored a competitive international goal for eight years before his clincher against Belgium in Lille, this was the Burnley striker’s second in 80 minutes on the pitch.
That settled any nerves and, when Bale found space 40 yards from goal in the 43rd minute, the whole ground willed him to shoot. Cebanu got down low to palm wide but from Ledley’s corner the Moldova goalkeeper flapped.
The ball dropped to Allen and the midfielder struck unerringly. He celebrated a first goal for his country on his 32nd appearance with a punch of the air and an expression of pure joy. His overall performance — energetic, composed — underlined what an odd move it was by Jurgen Klopp to end Allen’s time at Liverpool so coldly.
Five minutes after the break, Bale ran through to make it 3-0 and in added time he doubled his tally to edge closer to personal history. He is more concerned with the collective.
‘We enjoyed the past, but that’s history now. It’s time to make some more history,’ he said.