The year of the underdog

Just over a week ago the little folk of England and Wales gave a proverbial two fingered salute to Jean Claude Junker and his benign EU dictatorship. Then last Monday Iceland, a football team fashioned from a population of just over 330,000 caused the upset of Euro 2016 by defeating mighty Poundland, 2-1. And last night Wales, a country who last featured at a major international tournament in 1958 outplayed and outfought Belgium - the second ranked team in the world - to cause yet further upset. All of a sudden underdoggery is de rigeur.

Not that Wales ever really looked like losing. Though they went down to a spectacular early strike, they never panicked and for the next fifteen minutes dominated possession and territory. It thus came as little surprise that they should equalise from a corner, Ashley Williams providing the well directed header. Thereafter their team of predominantly journeymen pros - bar Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey and Joe Allen - never looked like conceding and once Hal Robson Kanu scored his wonder goal Belgium morphed into England. When that happened there was only ever going to be one outcome.

All of which begs the question how can it be that Wales, a side raised from similar stock to England, yet with a far smaller population fair so much better than their larger neighbour?

Firstly though their manager’s track record is less than impressive – sacked after a four year spell at Fulham, from where he went to Coventry City and then Larissa (I’d not heard of them either) before landing the Welsh role in 2012 - Chris Coleman has hit upon a remarkable theory that if you pick a settled team it generally means that your players know what each other is doing and thus perform better. Coleman was also a defender, the experience of which he has clearly used in organising the Welsh defence so that every man knows his role and sticks to it.

Secondly the players clearly have character. Watch the post match interviews and they come across as open and down to earth, all looking straight into the eyes of the interviewer, rather than furtively at the floor or into the distance.

And finally they are underdogs. Getting to the tournament was Wales’ final and every game since has been a bonus. Freed from pressure they are playing as if they are enjoying the tournament rather than being cowed by it and as a consequence now find themselves on the brink of a place in the final. Portugal will go into the semi final as favourites but thus far they have played poorly and their ongoing path is far from certain. If Wales can repeat that which they achieved against Belgium there is no reason why this year of the underdog should not continue.

©Mark Brennand