Gareth Bale insists he is fully fit for Wales’ historic World Cup after admitting he was “praying” he would make it.
Skipper and record scorer Gareth Bale will spearhead Rob Page’s men after returning from recently winning the MSL Cup with Los Angeles FC. He is set to lead out Wales next Monday in Qatar against USA before further Group B games against Iran and England.
It will be Wales’ first appearance at a finals since 1958 and no-one is more determined than Bale that they seize the moment. The former Spurs and Real Madrid star, 33, has only started two games for LA and has not played a full 90 minutes for his latest club since joining this summer.
And he admits being worried he could end up missing the tournament like other crocked stars including England’s Reece James. Bale said: “It has been difficult mentally hearing the stories of people going down and missing the World Cup.
“Speaking to a few of the boys, even for them having to play this weekend was tough mentally. We were praying not to have an injury at all because this is such a big occasion. But we are here now, raring to go. It is something everyone dreams of doing and will be a special occasion and something the whole nation is proud of.
“We are in the most difficult group on paper. Some people think it is success just qualifying for this tournament but we’ll be doing everything we can to get out of the group and get as far as we can.”
Wales fly out on Tuesday and play three games in nine days at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, which holds 40,000 fans. It is a hectic schedule but Bale has vowed to embrace it despite his lack of regular match action. He insisted: “I'm 100% fit. I'm fully fit and ready to go. If I need to play three 90s I'll play three 90s.”
Wales and Bale will wear the 'OneLove' captain’s armband in support of LGBTQ+ rights as Qatar criminalises same-sex sexual activity between men and between women. Bale said: “For us as footballers it has been a difficult subject to talk about.
“If we can shed light on the problems going on there it is useful. We have spoken to the FAW who have been speaking to the Welsh government who have been speaking to Qatar. They are working on these issues and we as players are supportive.
“The most we can do is raise awareness and it is for people higher to make those decisions and hopefully make a change for the better. We’ll be doing as much as we can to hopefully get change."
