Pacy James can hurt ageing Italy defence

FOR Daniel James, the full significance of walking out in a Wales jersey against Italy tonight extends far beyond football. His father died suddenly just over a year ago, so there will be a sense of how much having him in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico would have meant.

The 23-year-old related during the team’s stay in Baku how his father, Kevan, played a part in seeing him into the national set-up. ‘It was always Wales,’ he said, when asked if playing for England had ever been a possibility. ‘I went to my first camp when I was 12 in north Wales. My dad took me to it so I’ve been through the whole system.’

The platform his father helped provide gives James a chance to demonstrate what he brings to a game tonight. There was a feeling at times during his first Manchester United season that he did not bring quite enough end product to go with the electrifying pace, which has seen him clocked as the second fastest player at the tournament. Only Italy’s Leonardo Spinazzola has topped his recorded 33.5 km/h.

But the evidence of the two games has suggested otherwise. James has delivered from wide with both feet, with his weaker left providing the supply line for forward Kieffer Moore against Switzerland. ‘I see in him a bit of the way Leighton James ran with the ball, using his back foot at times to manipulate it,’ said former Welsh forward Dean Saunders, whose prime asset was pace. ‘He’s also improved off the ball. He’ll come short and spin — run without the ball.’

With Giorgio Chiellini, 36, and Leonardo Bonucci, 34, set to anchor Italy’s defence, James’s pace has the potential to be a useful weapon as Wales look for chinks in the armour of a side who have impressed so far.

He needs all the signature performances he can find for as long as Wales’s run lasts. If United recruit Jadon Sancho, the new signing would operate on United’s right, creating yet another obstacle to James’s progression. Mason Greenwood also blocks James’s path to the team on that flank, with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in his way down the left.

James admitted that after an impressive start to the season at Old Trafford, progress had been difficult, with only two Premier League starts since March. ‘I think there are always stages in your career where you might take that little dip but I’d like to think my all-round game is a lot better now,’ he said. ‘I’ve learnt so much and have been working on most things every day, learning off players in my position and doing the best I can to be ready for tournaments like this.’

Even Jose Mourinho eyes James as a potential breakthrough: ‘This kid James, they have to rely a lot on him, because he is fast. He’s the one who can break defenders.’