LONDON, 27 Mar. (dpa/EP) –
Former soccer player Gareth Bale, who retired last January, will receive a tribute from Welsh fans on Tuesday in the Euro 2024 qualifying match that Wales will play against Latvia in Cardiff.
The former captain announced his retirement from soccer in January after making 111 appearances and scoring 41 goals – both team records – during a remarkable 16-year international career.
The 33-year-old former Real Madrid striker played his last World Cup game in November and will arrive in Cardiff from his Los Angeles home before kick-off. Bale is expected to address the Welsh fans before the match.
“Gareth Bale will be at the Cardiff City Stadium tomorrow night. There will be an opportunity before the match for ‘The Red Wall’ (Wales fans) to show their appreciation to the Cymru legend,” the Bale Association said. Wales Football on their official Twitter account on Monday.
Bale’s return comes with sold-out tickets at Cardiff City Stadium after Wales’ first qualifying game for the Euro Cup, a draw in Croatia (1-1). Fulham’s Luke Harris was given the number 11 by Bale, although he did not play.
Manager Rob Page expects “an incredible atmosphere” on the pitch. “We have sold 32,000 tickets. Croatia is the reference point for us; we faced a great team in Croatia and not many get a good result there, and we did it with an incomplete squad. It was a difficult start away from home and we can take advantage of that,” he noted.
Wales, again without the injured Ben Davies and Brennan Johnson, are expected to be unchanged from the team that faced the World Cup semi-finalists in Split. In addition to Nathan Broadhead, scorer of the equalizer against the Balkans, Birmingham midfielder Jordan James also made his debut, and there were four other players on the bench who had not been called up.