AHMED BIN ALI STADIUM – It started with a “nope” and ended with no hope. The final act of Gareth Bale’s World Cup adventure was desperately cruel but a vivid illustration that time waits for no man – even one whose presence has been so inspirational in the past.
At the cavernous, cool media centre on the outskirts of Doha on Monday afternoon, he had been quick to scotch talk of international retirement with a sharp “nope”. But out on the grass, it felt like time had made the decision for him.
Six years ago his mere presence was enough to spook the living daylights out of England at Euro 2016. But the years beat on for even the best. Seven touches and one completed pass – deep inside his own half – was all he could muster before his night was brought to a premature end at half-time. He wore an expression etched with frustration on the bench but, even allowing for the injury he picked up, it was an act of mercy from Rob Page.
The question now is whether Bale has any place in the substantial rebuild job that faces Wales and Page, if the latter continues in his post.
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Page admitted himself he messed up the first game against the USA but was at a loss to explain the Iran defeat. A response was expected in the England game, but his tactics and set-up didn’t give Wales a chance of laying a glove on their British rivals.
There’s no doubt that England have a deeper pool of regular Premier League and Champions League starters to select from but Scotland provided a blueprint at the last Euros for how to trouble Gareth Southgate’s men.
And it didn’t involve sitting as deep as Wales did, or selecting three players in Bale, Aaron Ramsey and Joe Allen who were so desperately short of minutes that they always risked England’s sharper, younger engine room running rings around them.
Bale will not want to relinquish the Wales shirt or armband that he cherishes so much but it is the elephant in the room for Page, who has a quick turnaround before Euro 2024 qualifying starts. Wales have a testing group and desperately need to integrate Brennan Johnson and Joe Morrell as starters.
Bale? The future feels more uncertain. He is only 33 but came to this tournament desperately undercooked, partly because of injuries but also because of career calls he had deliberately made. Los Angeles offers him a nice life and a final payday but it is not serious preparation for the demands of the World Cup. Cardiff City might have been.
So Wales leave Qatar with plenty of regrets and a gnawing sense that they did not do themselves justice. Apart from the hosts, it’s difficult to think of a team that performed as consistently poorly as Page’s side. Their excellent support deserved so much more.
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