All Wales is waiting for a game. The one that measures this Thursday night (20:45, UEFA TV) to the selection of him with Austria, the penultimate step of the Dragon team to be in its first World Cup in 68 years. Also Gareth Bale. The Real Madrid international affirms on Sky Sports that all his thoughts are focused on a game that has taken over “all my preparation in recent months”.
“I’m focused solely on this match, on this qualifying. The stakes are high and I’m not thinking about anything else right now. This requires all my attention and concentration, all my preparation of the last few months. I don’t think about anything other than the game. I’m a fan, even though I’m playing. I want to see Wales in a World CupWhether you play it or not. It is a tremendously important game, but we have experience of playing important games and this is another one of them. Hopefully we can perform and get a good result,” Bale told British television microphones.
The madridista, who since September has only played one game in the white shirt and on Sunday fell out of the call-up for the Clásico at the last minute, assures that he is ready to play even the 120 minutes if the game goes into extra time. “Whatever happens, I will do my best to play 120 minutes if they ask me to. I will give 100%, as I always do“. He even contemplates how he will face a penalty shootout if it comes to it: “I always push myself to have a positive mentality. I don’t care if I go first or fifth as long as I score my penalty and do the job for the team and do my job for the team. That is the most important”.
Statistical comparison of Gareth Bale with Real Madrid and Tottenham and the Wales team.
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Bale, who will face his teammate David Alaba, assessed the factors that can decide the tie on one side or the other. “Experience is going to help. Having that experience in big games, dealing with nerves and pressure is always a good thing. It’s something we all know and I think we can use it to our advantage. Having experienced players on the team can help players. Now it’s all about preparing for the match and handling the situation as well as we can, giving 100% and no regrets.”
The player dodged the question when asked if he is contemplating his withdrawal. “It doesn’t make sense. I don’t have to think about it. I have plans for the future, but right now I’m not thinking beyond tonight’s game“.