Wes Burns is determined to show Wales manager Chris Coleman he can do more than be a short-term stand-in for Gareth Bale.
Burns was the only uncapped player in Coleman’s squad of 29 for the end of season training camp in Portugal, ahead of the Euro 2016 finals in France.
The 21-year-old striker – currently at Fleetwood Town after going out on loan from Bristol City – was called up as Bale was left out because of the Real Madrid star’s involvement in the Champions League final on May 28.
When the squad flies to the Algarve on May 23, Burns will be on the plane – but his ambition is to prove he should be alongside Bale when the cut to 23 players is made eight days later.
“If I do well in the training camp in Portugal, hopefully, I can book my seat book my seat on the plane to France,” said Burns, who has hit five goals in 14 games at Fleetwood.
“I think it’s on everyone’s mind as soon as they’ve seen the squad. All 29 players will be thinking they’ve got a chance to get to France. I don’t think I’m a million miles away.
“I’ve got to make sure that when I do go to the training camp that I work hard and knuckle down and show the gaffer what I can do.
“I know a couple of the young lads who are in the squad like George Williams, Tom Lawrence and Jonny Williams. I’ve played with them before in the Wales set-up.
“It just shows Wales are building a pathway from the Under-21 set-up into the first team, which is great.”
Burns, from Cardiff, was loaned to Fleetwood in order to gain more experience after being given only one start in the Championship this season.
Joe Ledley has been included in the provisional squad despite an Achilles injury which forced the Crystal Palace midfielder off against Stoke last weekend.
Coleman also included three more players who have recent injury concerns. Nottingham Forest’s David Vaughan and Bristol City’s Adam Matthews have both missed games for their clubs in recent weeks because of hamstring issues.
And goalkeeper Danny Ward has a knee problem that has ruled him out of Liverpool’s final two games.
Wales face Sweden in a friendly at the Friends Arena in Stockholm on June 5, in what will be their final warm-up game.
They kick-off their Euro 2016 campaign against Slovakia in Bordeaux on June 11, before facing England in Lens on June 16 and Russia in Toulouse on June 20.
WALES SQUAD
Wayne Hennessey (Crystal Palace)
Daniel Ward (Liverpool)
Owain Fôn Williams (Inverness Caledonian Thistle)
Ashley Williams (Swansea City)
James Chester (West Bromwich Albion)
Ben Davies (Tottenham Hotspur)
James Collins (West Ham United)
Chris Gunter (Reading)
Adam Matthews (Sunderland)
Neil Taylor (Swansea City)
Adam Henley (Blackburn Rovers)
Paul Dummett (Newcastle United)
Ashley Richards (Fulham)
Joe Ledley (Crystal Palace)
Joe Allen (Liverpool)
David Vaughan (Nottingham Forest)
Emyr Huws (Wigan Athletic)
Jonathan Williams (Crystal Palace)
David Edwards (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
George Williams (Fulham)
Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal)
Andy King (Leicester City)
David Cotterill (Birmingham City)
Hal Robson-Kanu (Reading)
Tom Lawrence (Leicester City)
Simon Church (Milton Keynes Dons)
Sam Vokes (Burnley)
Wes Burns (Bristol City)
Tom Bradshaw (Walsall)