Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale says Wales’ 2-0 defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina on Saturday evening was the ‘best loss of his career’ as his nation qualified for Euro 2016 despite the result.
Chris Coleman’s men needed a point to secure automatic qualification for themselves for the tournament in France next summer – their first major tournament since 1958. But Cyprus’ surprise win over Israel ensured Wales would go through no matter what.
Wales had conceded two late goals to slip to their first defeat in qualifying but when they heard the result from the other game, it sparked wild celebrations among the player and the travelling support.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Bale, who this week was named Wales’ Player of the Year for a record fifth time, said: “This is probably the best loss of my life. It was a difficult game but at the end of the day all that matters is qualifying.”
“This ranks right up there in terms of my career, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do and every young boy dreams of playing at a major tournament. Now we want to go over there and do something in France. We’re like brothers out the pitch and there’s so much togetherness in this squad. It will nice to be able to test ourselves in the best tournament of the world, and we can’t wait,” he continued.
