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European Championship | Qualifiers
Oct 13, 2015 at 7.45pm UK
 
AN

2-0

Ramsey (50'), Bale (86')
FT(HT: 0-0)

Preview: Wales vs. Andorra

:Headline: Preview: Wales vs. Andorra: ID:252093: from db_amp
Sports Mole previews Wales' final Euro 2016 qualifier against Andorra at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Wales will be in a celebratory mood when they host Andorra at the Cardiff City Stadium for their final Euro 2016 qualifier on Tuesday night.

Chris Coleman's side have secured their place in the finals of the major tournament for the first time in 58 years, while Andorra will only be playing for pride as they reside at the bottom of Group B.


Wales

The home fans will be bouncing in Cardiff tomorrow when Wales enter the field for their final qualifier knowing that their plane ticket to France is already secured for next summer.

Wales are not regarded as one of the heavyweights in international football as they have struggled to make a name for themselves over the years, but with a team that currently boasts the talents of Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey and Real Madrid's Gareth Bale, who is the most expensive footballer in history, Coleman's men had a shot at making the European Championships this time around.

The Dragons made a strong start to their qualifying campaign by going four games unbeaten in 2014, with two victories and as many draws, but goals were hard to come by for the team as they managed just four in those matches.

In 2015, Coleman's side went on a winning streak by winning three games on the trot, meaning that qualification from a group which included Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel, Cyprus and Andorra was in their sights, but they delayed the jubilant scenes by failing to score in a goalless draw with the Israelis.

On Saturday, Wales knew that their long wait for a major championship would come to an end if Israel suffered defeat, and even though Coleman's men lost 2-0 to Bosnia, their qualification was complete due to Cyprus' win on away turf.

While Wales have put in strong team displays throughout the qualifying process, it is difficult to imagine the nation being in this position had they not had Bale among their ranks.

The 26-year-old, who joined Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2013 for a world-record £85m fee, has scored eight of Wales' nine goals in the campaign, and if he scores tonight, the attacker could help Wales finish top of Group B.

At this point, the nation's position in the standings is secondary in terms of importance, but should Wales win and Belgium drop points against Israel, then Coleman's side will top the group.

Wales' success has been an emotional one for the coaching staff and the players as the late Gary Speed, who died in 2011, laid the foundations for the team before Coleman succeeded him as manager.

Recent form: DWWWDL


Andorra

As mentioned above, the only thing left to play for from Andorra's point of view is pride given that they have failed to pick up a single point in their qualifying campaign.

In September last year, Koldo's side had a glimpse of hope when they took on Wales in their opening qualifier as Ildefons Lima slotted the ball home from the penalty spot in the sixth minute to give Andorra the lead on home turf.

However, that lead was short lived as Bale struck twice in the 22nd and 81st minute to take all three points, and given that Andorra will be on Welsh turf tomorrow evening, it will be much harder for them to cause an upset.

The campaign went downhill for Andorra from that first loss as they were heavily beaten by Belgium, who grabbed an emphatic 6-0 win, Israel and Cyprus before the year was out.

It was much of the same in 2015 as they suffered five defeats by three goals or more, their latest of which came on Saturday in the form of a 4-1 loss to Belgium.

The history books do not work in their favour as they have never won a competitive away game having drawn one and lost 44, and they have not picked up a point on the road since their goalless draw with Macedonia in February 2005.

Goals have also been elusive for Andorra as they have failed to find the back of the net in their last 13 away qualifiers and have only managed four goals in their entire qualifying campaign so far.

Recent form: LLLLLL
Recent form (all competitions): LLLLLL


Team News

From a Wales point of view, none of the players will want to miss tomorrow's showdown as they perform in front of their fans knowing that they are on their way to Paris for next summer's finals.

Bale is expected to be the first name on the teamsheet given the contribution that he has made to Wales' campaign, however the Madrid star may not be used for the entire 90 minutes as he only recently returned from injury.

Ramsey, Joe Allen and Joe Ledley could keep their spots in the middle of the park, while captain Ashley Williams is expected to marshall the defence as usual.

With Andorra not expecting to get much out of tomorrow's game, the visitors could keep 19-year-old Lleida striker Aaron Sanchez up top alongside Sebastian Gomez, as well as playing a four-man midfield, including Oscar Sonejee and Marcio Vieira.

Wales possible starting lineup: Hennessey; Gunter, Williams, Davies, Richards, Taylor; Ramsey, Allen, Ledley; Robson-Kanu, Bale

Andorra possible starting lineup: Pol; Nicolas, Sola, Llovera, Garcia; Vieira, Rebes, Moreira, Sonejee; Gomez, Sanchez


Head To Head

These two sides do not have much of a history of meetings given that they have only played each other on one occasion, which was at the start of the qualifying campaign in September last year.

As mentioned, the match ended in a 2-1 victory for Wales, but had Bale failed to inspire a comeback after his side went 1-0 down in the sixth minute, perhaps the Dragons' qualifying campaign would have gone in a different direction, and Andorra's for that matter.

The goal for the home side in September's meeting was rather a landmark one as prior to that the team had gone 18 competitive games without scoring, which dated back to 2010.


We say: Wales 2-0 Andorra

The form books are 100% in Wales' favour given that they have suffered just one defeat in their qualifying campaign, while Andorra have not managed to win any of their matches in Group B. In addition, Andorra have lost all of their 49 European Championship games, so it would be a massive shock if they cause an upset at the Cardiff City Stadium. Spirits will be high when Wales take to the field tomorrow evening, and despite losing to Bosnia at the weekend, the sheer joy of reaching the Euro finals for the first time in 58 years is likely to push them to victory.



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