From Graham Thomas in Dinard
Gareth Bale insists he has not been playing mind games with England – but says none of their players would get into the Wales side.
The Real Madrid star was clearly enjoying himself again on Tuesday afternoon when he spoke to the media ahead of Thursday’s Euro 2016 transported derby against England.
Far from backing down on his remarks earlier in the week that England players lack humility as well as national pride, Bale went on the offensive and said he was glad England had “bit”.
He said: “It’s good that they bit. I never said that they didn’t have passion and pride, I just feel in my opinion that we have more.
“I’m sure they have their opinion that they have more also. I’m happy with my comments. I feel we’ve got a massive team spirit, one of the best I’ve seen – and that’s just my opinion.
“For me, there are no mind games. We focus on ourselves, other people like to comment on them. It’s what you take out of it, how much you look into it.
“For us a team and as a camp, we don’t look into it. Nothing’s fazing us, we don’t feel any pressure, we just want to enjoy the occasion.”
England manager Roy Hodgson branded Bale’s initial comments as disrespectful and his Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere then joined the attack by claiming none of the Wales team would get into England’s.
When asked the same question in reverse – how many Englishmen would dislodge Welsh players – Bale replied: “None” and underlined the point with a smile.
“People can say what they want. Someone said I disrespected England, which wasn’t the case.
“They’re entitled to their opinion. I really don’t care what they say to be honest. If they feel they have the better squad, good for them.
“We know we’re a good team and we know we can beat them on our day.”
“I’m not saying England don’t have pride or passion, I’m sure they do. For me, I just feel whether it’s football or rugby or whatever sport it is, in Wales we seem to have that next level.
“We really feel it on the pitch, watching the games. I’m just giving my opinion.
“We obviously know they have strengths, they are a very good team. We know everything about them, a lot of the boys play against them week-in week-out. We also know they have weaknesses, not going to say what they are, but we’ll do our homework and look to exploit those weaknesses.
Wales have not beaten England since 1984 – when a Mark Hughes goal proved decisive in one of the last Home International fixtures played at Wrexham.
Having drawn their opener, 1-1 against Russia, England will be desperate to preserve that record, but Bale believes the gap that once existed between the teams has diminished.
“We know they’re a good team and, I’m sure if they put in a good performance, they’ll feel they can beat us and we’re exactly the same. If we work well as a team, we feel we can win.
“We’ll be looking forward to it and preparing to win.
“We know they’re a bigger nation with more players to choose from but we’ve closed the gap massively.”