World Cup 2022: Wales' next journey starts with a new identity - Ashley Williams

Wales are going location from this World Cup and it's clip to deliberation astir what lessons person been learnt for aboriginal campaigns, much than what could person been done otherwise successful Qatar.

That is the people present and I americium 100% definite that Rob Page is the antheral to instrumentality america to Germany.

He got america to this World Cup, and helium knows the squad and what enactment needs to beryllium done for america to qualify, immoderate of which has been shown successful this tournament.

Wales request to find an identity

The archetypal happening we request to bash is found is simply a wide identity, similar my Wales squad had erstwhile we reached the semi-finals of Euro 2016. We were a small spot nasty, and precise hard to beat.

With our strongest side, we had astir apt 9 seasoned professionals who had seen it each and weren't overawed by anything, whether it beryllium the apical teams oregon a hostile atmosphere.

We would support a cleanable expanse and we ever knew we had 1 of the champion players successful the satellite to trust connected successful Gareth Bale to get america thing astatine the different end.

It's a antithetic script for Page now, due to the fact that Bale is getting older.

In Qatar, it felt similar we were reasoning astir the caller attack but hoping the aged 1 would inactive enactment for us.

That's fine, but present is the clip to look to the future. Page needs to travel distant from what utilized to enactment and find retired what is going to beryllium the caller happening for Wales to autumn backmost on.

So, are they going to effort to out-play people, out-battle them…or bash a small spot of both?

The bully quality is that we person a spot of clip to respire going into the adjacent qualifying run for the Euros, which starts successful March.

We person got Croatia, Armenia, Turkey and Latvia successful our group, and the apical 2 suffice automatically, with different spots disposable done the Nations League play-offs.

Getting done that is decidedly doable and we indispensable beryllium reasoning we tin get to Germany, but astatine the aforesaid clip Page has to determine what benignant of broadside helium wants america to be, and crook america into that squad on the way.

Bale tin bow retired whenever helium wants

It looks similar Bale volition beryllium a portion of that Euro 2024 run aft saying helium volition play connected for Wales for arsenic agelong arsenic helium can, and for arsenic agelong arsenic helium is wanted.

That's superb quality for us. We haven't seen the Bale of, say, Euro 2016 astatine this tournament, but helium inactive provided a monolithic infinitesimal by stepping up to people our punishment against the United States.

I americium pleased helium has a World Cup extremity to adhd to his bequest for Wales, which was immense anyway.

I was a pundit connected the England crippled with Ian Rush, different Welsh legend, but I wanted to marque the constituent connected aerial that helium is the top Welsh subordinate ever - and I would reiterate that here.

On the mode to the game, we'd had a treatment with Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Rio Ferdinand astir whether Bale is the top British subordinate ever too. Everyone had a antithetic sentiment astir who that really was, but the information Bale was successful the speech shows the standard of his achievements.

He's ever fixed his each for Wales and it's not each been creaseless for him. I've seen him play though injuries and thing ever stopped him joining up with the squad, nary substance wherever we were playing.

If helium decided helium was retiring now, no-one could kick astir his committedness oregon his publication to the nationalist cause.

He led these boys to a World Cup so, whenever helium wants to bow out, it is good with me. He did notation the Euros are conscionable astir the country truthful we mightiness spot him again. I anticipation so.

A caller nucleus to the Wales side

Hopefully we tin marque plans involving Bale and Aaron Ramsey, and Joe Allen too, but the nucleus of the squad for the Euros, and surely beyond it, is going to person to travel from elsewhere.

The affirmative happening determination is that we person immoderate bully young players, and they each person a batch of caps already.

I americium talking astir Ethan Ampadu, Harry Wilson, Dan James, Joe Rodon and Brennan Johnson, astir of whom person got 40-odd caps arsenic good arsenic acquisition of astatine slightest 1 large finals too.

I deliberation it's clip for them to spot what absorption Page wants america to spell successful and thrust this squad guardant now, whether Gaz, Aaron and Joe are determination oregon not.

I was truly impressed by Ampadu's performances successful Qatar, helium is going to beryllium a precise important subordinate for america successful the adjacent fewer years.

It is pugnacious for him due to the fact that his versatility is truthful utile for us, but him being capable to play successful truthful galore positions means helium has not nailed down one.

That mightiness alteration if Page decides connected a settled enactment erstwhile helium implements his plan.

Recently, we've been flip-flopping excessively overmuch betwixt 3 and 4 astatine the back, and that does not assistance players erstwhile they travel into the squad.

If the squad ever plays with a acceptable signifier and successful a definite way, it is overmuch clearer to cognize what you person to do.

That has to alteration successful this adjacent qualification campaign. Making consecutive tournaments was the people for america aft Euro 2016 - and it didn't happen. But Page has already managed that. Now we person to marque it 3 successful a row.

From 2008, erstwhile I made my Wales debut, up until the 2014 World Cup, we ne'er adjacent had a speech betwixt the players astir making a finals, our attack was conscionable to bash our champion and enactment successful contention arsenic agelong arsenic we could.

We person travel a agelong mode successful a abbreviated abstraction of clip and had a fantastic clip on the way, but present a caller travel starts. Page and his squad person to enactment hard to marque definite we get to the adjacent party.

Ashley Williams was speaking to Chris Bevan successful Doha, Qatar.

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