The Rise of the Red Dragon - A Welsh Story
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Yeh will do, I posted that too early, haha got to add the stats too it
I'll post an end of year table as well.---------- Post added at 04:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:20 AM ----------
Wales vs Bulgaria - Post Match Reaction
Ryan Giggs put in a fabulous performance against Bulgaria providing 3 assists
"A great result for us against Bulgaria tonight, we played them off he park and restricted them to only 2 shots on goal, we could have had a few more tonight, but I can't fault the performance today. Craig Bellamy came off tonight and but it was only with a dead leg and he'll be fit for the away trip to Switzerland on Tuesday, we are looking forward to the challenge and are confident of putting in a good performance."
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Monday 11th October 2010
Today Wales have left Cardiff International Airport heading out to Switzerland ready for their match tomorrow at Stade de Suisse Wankdorf in bern.
Wales tomorrow face a tough match against a Switzerland side who have won 1 game and lost 1 game so far in the qualifiers. Beating Montenegro 1 - 0 away from home whilst losing to England 3 - 1 in Switzerland.
Switzerland are a notoriously hard team to break down after going out of the World Cup without conceding a goal, and beating the eventual champions Spain in a back to the wall display. They are a team that is designed to absorb pressure and then hit the opposition on the break.
Wales so far under Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs have got a 100% record scoring 12 goals and conceding just 1 in their first 4 games, that's an average of 3 goals per game and conceding an average of just 0.25. This is a dramatic turn around from the previous performances under John Toshack.
Switzerland vs Wales
Welcome to Match of the Days coverage of Wales' away trip to Stade de Suisse Wankdorf to face a Switzerland side looking to build on their 1 - 0 victory over Montenegro.
You join us is Basel to watch Wales play Switzerland in a match that Ryan Giggs is confident of getting a result, "What are your thought's on Wales chances against Switzerland today Alan?"
Alan Shearer replied "I feel that Wales have got an opportunity to really put their qualification credentials on the line today, if they manage to get a result tonight then they go into the new year with 9 points and will likely be leading the group ahead of England, this will be a fantastic result for both British teams, both hoping to qualify for the Euro's. I feel that if they win today, then there is every chance that they will be able to get to the finals."
Ryan Giggs, once again has lined up with the same squad as he has done before and is likely to want his team to push on and dominate a Switzerland side that thrives on defending and hitting teams on the counter, Wales have pace in abundance up front after Craig Bellamy has recovered from a dead leg to return to the starting lineup after going off after just 27 minutes against Bulgaria last Friday.
Welsh Lineup:
A player really coming to the forefront for Wales is young Swansea left back Neil Taylor, he has come on leaps and bounds and has put in some very strong performances over the last couple of months. He seems to have secured himself a first team place for Wales at the tender age of 21, he has a great desire to work hard for the team in intelligent at reading the game.
Its time to cross over for some pre match thoughts from Ryan Giggs as they head out for their final competitive match of 2010.
Switzerland vs Wales - Ryan Giggs Pre-Match thoughts
"Its important today for us not to lose and hopefully get a victory, I feel we are capable of this, the team have trained extremely well and I am delighted to have Craig Bellamy in the starting lineup after recovering from his dead leg. We really hope to end the year on a high which would be great for confidence and great for the build up before the Carling 4 Nations Cup in the new year."
Giggs inspires away win in Basel
Ryan Giggs scored 2 goals as Wales win in Basel
An invaluable win for Wales away in Basel tonight after Ryan Giggs scores 2 to make the score 2 - 1.
In a match that Wales were aiming to win they achieved but only thanks to an absolute master class from Legendary Midfielder Ryan Giggs. The match started badly for Switzerland with Behrami taking a minor knock after putting in a tough tackle on Wolves Striker Sam Vokes. Then in the 14th minute Ziegler suffered fractured ribs after colliding with Gareth Bale and Magnin came on to replace him.
Ryan Giggs' men came close to opening the scoring in the 22nd minute after Gareth Bale bombed forward on the left playing a neat ball to Andy King, who hit a first time pass to Ryan Giggs, who dribbled the ball past Arsenal Defender Djourou and delivered a fabulous cross into the box for Craig Bellamy to head wide, it was a glorious chance and one Wales might have regretted missing on another day.
In the 25th minute Alexander Frei had an opportunity to make it 1 - 0 for the home team after he was played in by a fine pass from Eren Derdiyok but shot clean over the bar, the striker should have done better from that range.
The deadline was broken in the 31st minute when Craig Bellamy headed a Gareth Bale cross at the Swiss keeper who could only parry for Ryan Giggs to blast in from close range to make it 1 - 0 to the visitors. Bellamy really should have capitalised on an opportunity in the 39th minute for Wales to make it 2 - 0 after he blasted just over the bar from an angle where he should have done better.
Craig Bellamy missed several good opportunities for Wales
Wales performed very well early on in the second half creating several early chances that they did not manage to capitalise on but eventually got the vital second goal in the 65th minute after substitute David Edwards played a fantastic ball over the top which Ryan Giggs latched onto and went on a mazy run before taking the ball around the keeper to pass the ball in the back on the net.
Switzerland forced a nervy end to the game for Wales after Wales continued to push on to get a third goal, Eren Derdiyok capitalised and bombed forward after Fernandes had headed clear for Switzerland. The goal was scored by Padalino who had a simple finish after Derdiyok played a fantastic square ball for him to just pass into an empty net after Hennessey was left stranded.
Ryan Giggs made an immediate change bringing on midfielders Robbie Savage and Aaron Ramsey to bring an air of control to the game, the tactic worked very well and Savage worked tirelessly in midfield and Switzerland were unable to create any more opportunities in the game.
This win leaves Wales topping group G with further analysis on the group results coming up later.
Tuesday 12th October 2010
Euro 2012 Qualifier
Switzerland 1 - 2 Wales _________ FT
Padalino (74)_________ Ryan Giggs (31, 65)
Ziegler injured (14)___________________
Switzerland vs Wales - Post Match Reaction
"This has been an unbelievable result for us and really puts us in the driving seat for qualifying we have got 3 home matches in our next 5 matches and I believe that we need 6 points from those games to guarantee our qualification. I can understand that the supporters and fans are focusing on me because I scored the two goals, but it was a great team performance we might not have dominated the game as much as I would have hoped, but we certainly capitalised when we had the opportunities. The players did get a bit nervous after the scored in the 74th minute, but Rob came off the bench along with Aaron and really held the team together, it has been a fantastic decision for Rob to come out of retirement, he has already proven his worth to the team. We now have a month until our next friendly against Armenia where I will be looking to give some other players an opportunity to show what they can do"
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Captain,,,Manager...Goalscorer! brilliant result again mate! as you can tell im watching this story closely! its really good
I am amazed at how good he has been playing in that trequartista role behind the striker, its like he was born to do it, and despite his age and acceleration only being 13 he can still beat men and is easily my best player.
He's a god and i;m a liverpool fan! but keep him in the team and you should have no doubts in qualifying the way he is going
I am hoping to keep him going to the actual competition, I feel it would be immense for Ryan to propel them to their first proper tournament for so many years, it would be a great way for him to end his career, but I don't know how long he'll go on for I guess as long as he keeps playing for Man Utd he won't retire!!! Got another update coming soon, deffo going to call it a day after that!!!
yer too right! he is awesome! yer as long as he don't retire you should qualify
ah right well i'm shooting off now anyway! so will catch the update in the morning and hopefully finish off my season
Wednesday 13th October 2010
South Wales Echo looks at Wales' brilliant European campaign so far, as well as analysing the other table toppers from Group A to I
Ryan Giggs' Wales side have started far better than many pundits and indeed fans expected, winning all of their 5 games so far this season scoring a massive 18 goals and conceding 2. This is an incredible feat for a team that had only won 10 of their previous 29 qualifiers. Ryan Giggs has brought entertainment and a free scoring Wales to the fans, and it has paid as Wales have been filling the stadiums and are hosting their next friendly at the Millennium Stadium against Armenia on 17th November 2010. First lets analyse their qualifying success which has mainly been down to one man, and that man is indeed Ryan Giggs. Ryan has scored 2 goals and assisted 4 goals in these 3 games as well as being heavily involved with many more of their goals.
This is how the group table looks so far.
Wales are sitting pretty on the top of the group with 9 points from their first 3 games, after scoring 9 goals and conceding just 2 with a goal difference that betters Englands by +1. Montenegro are the whipping boys of the group after suffering 4 defeats and only scoring 1 goal, this coming against Wales in the first qualifying match.
This is how the fixtures in Group G look so far with the two British sides dominating in all of their games and will be looking to finalise their qualification success by winning their remaining home games. Wales face England, Switzerland and Montenegro at home and after the start they have had they will have every confidence in getting results in these games. England despite winning all their games have been far from impressive against Bulgaria and Switzerland and these results could have easily been very different on another day.
Ryan Giggs is so far leading the European Championship assist chart after providing 4 goals for his team in just the first 3 qualifiers. Wales will hope that Ryan can maintain his fitness and performances for the rest of the campaign.
Wales Scoring Chart Euro 2012 Qualifiers
Wales are playing free scoring football at the moment with Ryan Giggs and David Vaughan both leading the chart on 2 goals with another 5 scorers on 1 goal. This is extremely important for the team as it will give them confidence that they can get a goal from any area of the pitch.
Ryan Giggs - 2
David Vaughan - 2
Craig Bellamy - 1
David Edwards - 1
Andy King - 1
Gareth Bale - 1
Sam Vokes - 1
Other teams to watch out for
We are nearly mid way through the Euro 2012 Qualifiers and we are beginning to see who will be likely candidates for qualifying for the competition, there are all the likely candidates with Group A's Germany looking strong candidates to qualify as well as Italy in Group C. Group D's France and Group E's Holland are looking like dead certs for qualifying for the competition. All the other groups are being tightly contested with Group I being an exciting group with Scotland currently in second place ahead of Spain in third.
The competition certainly looks like its hotting up, Wales will be looking forward to facing England in March and hoping to win, if they manage to secure a victory at the Millennium Stadium then they will more or less have secured their qualification to the final tournament.
We caught up with some Welsh fans and asked them what they thought of Wales' qualification campaign so far.
"I can't believe what we're seeing its totally different to what we are used to, the team is actually playing together and Ryan Giggs, what a man he is a god!"
"Ryan Giggs is the messiah!!! He is unbelievable the way we are playing we have every chance of winning the whole competition."
"I can't wait for us to play England in March, we really want to stick it to them and show them who's boss, they have consistently underperformed at World Cup and Euro Cup finals, and we want to prove that we can do better."
Some very optimistic fans out there and they will certainly be hoping to see more of this when Wales play against Armenia in November, winning there will be a great way to end the year.
Thanks mate it's great fun you could bring Giggs out of retirement on the actual fm editor I also am using LFC Marshalls January update.
It's great fun managing them though.
Nice update with the tables and the stats
Just got the one friendly left this year, then its to the Carling Four Nations Cup and England,
ah what a beautiful year!
Oh yes, and can't imagine Armenia will put up much of a fight, I'll haave an update done in a bit concluding the year.
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Woah, brilliant story so far. If only Wales could have this success on the pitch in real life
Oh I know I'm going to go and watch Wales against England in March and I'm sure it won't be as exciting as it will be in football manager haha!!
Exclusive: Aaron Ramsey Interview
Talk Sport managed to catch up with Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey at Arsenal's training ground to speak to him ahead of the trip to Armenia on Tuesday.
Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey has been an outstanding performer in a Cardiff side that is aiming for promotion and is are currently 4 points off the play offs in the Championship. So far this season he has scored 6 goals and assisted 1 so far this season. Aaron spoke to us about Ryan Giggs and the impact that he made on the squad. "It has been incredible since he has come back, he has brought an air of confidence to the squad, we know believe that we can win every game that we go into. A feeling that we have never had before. It's a great feeling when you watch him, there is a great feeling amongst the youth players in the squad having the chance to play with a legend like Ryan and seeing him up close."
Aaron Ramsey had forced his way into the Arsenal first team last season before he suffered a horrific injury after Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross went in hard and resulted in him breaking his leg. Aaron spoke about his return to football. "It was the worst moment of my career, and it's a great feeling getting back out there and playing, I am delighted to be given the opportunity of playing with Cardiff to build up my fitness ahead of returning to Arsenal in February." So far he has been bled back into the squad slowly after making two appearances from the bench for Wales and has spoken about his desire to force his way back into the starting lineup.
"Its been great pulling on a Welsh shirt again, so far coming on twice in the second half Ryan has spoken to me and asked me how I would feel about starting in the near future. I was delighted and it looks like I might be getting the nod in the match against Armenia."
Wales are finishing their 2010 calender on Wednesday, they will be looking at putting on a show for the fans at the Millennium Stadium after demand for tickets went through the roof so the venue was changed from the Cardiff City Stadium.
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This is a top class story mate, rell well thought of and loads and effort and time has gone into this story,
Thanks mate, really grateful of the feedback and always looking to improve so if anyone thinks of some sub plot or something that they feel would be good to include just suggest it
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Wales vs Armenia
Welcome to Match of the Days coverage of Wales' last match of the 2010 calender and they will be looking to end the year with a Victory.
You join us tonight in Cardiff at the a packed Millennium Stadium with the Welsh fans anticipating a big win today. It has been a fantastic second half to the year for them winning all of their matches under new boss and Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs. Alan Shearer, Mark Lawrenson and Alan Hansen join us today to analyse Wales' chances and look ahead to the match. It is likely that Wales will name a team similar to that, that defeated Switzerland last month.
The team sheet has just arrived with young Aaron Ramsey returning for Wales to replace Blackpool's injured midfielder David Vaughan, Aaron will be looking at putting in a strong performance to impress new boss Ryan Giggs ahead of the coming Carling 4 Nations Cup in Ferbruary.
Wales Lineup:
As we can see young Aaron Ramsey returns after coming back from an injury, its no doubt a great day for Welsh fans to see the midfielder back in the Wales shirt. Ryan Giggs once again starts in the role behind the striker and will be looking to wow the fans again with another great performance. Alan what do you make of Wales' lineup today, "Well its great to see Aaron back in the team, he is an unbelievable talent, after breaking through into the Arsenal first team last year and really impressing and he has looked back to his best whilst playing for Cardiff so far this year."
Its time to cross to our touchline reporter Jonathan Pearce who is with Wales boss Ryan Giggs.
Wales vs Armenia - Pre Match thoughts
"Tonight's game will be a great opportunity to give Aaron a chance to show us what he can do and take a look at some other players that will be given the opportunity to come on and show us what they can bring to the side. We are here to give the fans a show as its an incredible atmosphere out there and its an incredible feeling to walk out there in front of the crowd again."
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