Sometimes, it takes time to achieve the targets we want. And with the Wales national soccer team, it has been a long time since they graced their presence in the FIFA World Cup. But what does it mean to enter the most prestigious tournament in the world? Gareth Bale, the former Welsh captain, explains how their recent participation in the Qatar tournament is a tribute to the late, iconic coach, Gary Speed.

The journey to the World Cups has not been easy for the best teams. The 2022 edition saw teams like Roberto Mancini’s Italy not qualifying despite winning the 2020 Euro. However, it was an impressive feat for the Dragons, as they qualified by the narrowest of margins, fulfilling the desire of the late Gary Speed.

Gareth Bale remembers the late iconic Gary Speed after the World Cup qualification

After qualifying more than himself, Bale thinks that Gary Speed would have lifted his head high after their successful participation. Speaking to Gary Lineker in the Netflix documentary ‘Captains of the World,’ Bale stated, “We still speak about him to this day. Everyone involved will tell you how grateful the whole nation is. If he didn’t come in that moment, we might not have had the foundation for us to kick on and achieve what we’ve achieved,” to which Lineker replied, “If he’s watching somewhere, I think he’d be proud of what’s happened.”

After a tiring campaign during the qualification period, Wales qualified after 64 years by beating Ukraine 1-0 at home. Their previous appearance was in the 1958 version. A loss would have left them unqualified. But Bale’s 34th-minute banger ensured Wales would qualify, and the 34-year-old credits Gary for being the reason for the team’s achievement and where they stood during that time. However, Wales were knocked out in the group stages after losing 3-0 to England in their last group game.

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Gary Speed’s iconic career

Gary Speed was credited with transforming the soccer of his national team. Taking over in 2010 as the coach, he brought the standards and professionalism to the unit. He successfully elevated the team’s FIFA rankings from 117th to 48th during his tenure. Players like Aaron Ramsey and Bale grew under the leadership of Speed. Unfortunately, the Welshman committed suicide in November 2011 at the age of 42.

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During his playing career, Speed was the highest-capped Welsh player with 85 caps, for which the record stood until 2018. The player scored seven goals and provided four assists. He mostly played for Leeds United and Newcastle United in his club career. In the latter stages, he played for Sheffield United, where he later became its coach before managing Wales. Speed also won the last Division One trophy in English soccer before the Premier League arrived.

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