Harry Wilson eyes more history against Belgium 12 years on from Wales debut
Wales face a World Cup qualifying double-header this week with Friday's home game against Liechtenstein preceding their daunting Group J trip to Belgium three days later.
The Dragons have not won in eight previous visits to Belgium – losing five and drawing three – in a fixture stretching all the way back to 1949.
'The Liechtenstein game is first and international football has shown many times over the years that there are no easy games,' said Wilson, who finished the season in fine form at Fulham after recovering from a fractured foot and a 10-week lay-off.
'Although on paper people will think we should win that game comfortably, we still have to go out there and perform.
'For us to look ahead to Belgium before getting that game done would be silly, but going into this camp six points is definitely the aim.'
Wilson beat Gareth Bale's record to become Wales' youngest-ever player at the age of 16 years and 207 days against Belgium in October 2013.
'It was by far the biggest stadium I'd ever played in,' said Wilson, who will win his 61st cap against Liechtenstein in Cardiff.
'That struck me immediately walking out before the game.'
'(Eden) Hazard and (Kevin) De Bruyne were playing for them and for a young lad to be sitting there thinking 'I could be sharing the pitch with them' was amazing.
'When (Wales manager Chris) Coleman turned round and gave me the nod that I was going on it was a mixture of nerves and excitement.
'I can't really remember too much about being on the pitch, but I came on at 1-0 down and we drew 1-1, so I'll take a little bit of credit for that.'
Wales famously beat Belgium 3-1 in the quarter-finals at Euro 2016 and the two countries have been regular opponents over the last decade or so.
So much so that De Bruyne once labelled playing Wales 'boring', claiming: 'I think half of my international career has been against Wales.'
Recent contests have been close affairs with both nations recording two wins each and sharing four draws since Wilson's debut game.
Croeso nol, boios 😎 pic.twitter.com/KqVZ9iyHu5
— Wales 🏴 (@Cymru) June 1, 2025
'We have shown over the years that we are a good team,' said Wilson, who scored against Belgium during a World Cup qualifier in 2021.
'But to have a record as good as that against a nation who have had a golden era over the last 10 to 15 years is an amazing feat.'
Wales resume their World Cup qualifying campaign having picked up four points in March from a 3-1 home victory over Kazakhstan and a 1-1 draw in North Macedonia.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
England T20 captain Harry Brook: I'm already preparing for 2026 World Cup
Friday's 21-run win over the West Indies in Durham was Brook's first outing as skipper in the format but he knows time is short to get his feet under the table. England have just 14 more games scheduled before the next global tournament in India and Sri Lanka in February, meaning the time is now when it comes to making plans. Dip. Grip. Past the edge 😮💨 Back in the team 🦁Straight in the wickets 👏 Liam Dawson | #ENGvWI — England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 6, 2025 That meant lining up with just two seamers for the first ever time in home conditions, with 12 overs of spin giving a hint at the structure England are likely to lean on in the sub-continent. While Brook's predecessor Jos Buttler set things up with a dominant knock of 96, Liam Dawson walked away with the player-of-the-match award in his first international appearance in nearly three years. The 35-year-old Hampshire stalwart claimed career-best figures of four for 20, while there were also wickets for Adil Rashid and Jacob Bethell. 'We don't want to look too far ahead but we've got to trial some things like this,' said Brook. 'The next World Cup is going to be in Sri Lanka and India. We're not completely set on this structure for the team but it's worth a go and it worked this time. 'I just think that having two very good spinners – frontline spinners – makes a massive difference. 'As a batter, when you're facing two experienced spin bowlers, you have to decide which end you're going to attack. 'These two (Rashid and Dawson) have been playing the game for so long, they know T20 cricket, they know the grounds and they've played against so many of these boys, that having them both in the side will help us going forward.' Dawson, who has been overlooked consistently for a rotating cast of spinners with inferior records on the county circuit, was praised for an 'awesome' comeback performance that saw him get the best of Johnson Charles, Sherfane Rutherford, Roston Chase and Rovman Powell. 'He bowled beautifully. He's got so many skills. He's been playing the game for pushing on 20 years and he's learned a lot of things along the way,' said Brook. The West Indies were frustrated to be missing one of their own left-arm spinners on a helpful pitch for the slower bowlers. Akeal Hosein has yet to make it to English soil after delays related a change in UK visa requirements for Trinidad and Tobago. Cricket West Indies said 'attempts to expedite the visa process' had been unsuccessful but a spokesperson confirmed on Friday that the 32-year-old could arrive ahead of Tuesday's series finale in Southampton. One of our greatest white-ball players ever 🙌 Match Highlights: | @JosButtler — England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 6, 2025 All-rounder Jason Holder said: 'He was missed, he's one of our frontline players. It's an unfortunate situation. 'We can't control that so we can only control what's in front of us. We've got players here who are willing and able to do a job for the West Indies. 'We had a team that was good enough to beat England but we fell a little short, particularly with the bat.'
South Wales Argus
3 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Confidence is growing within Republic of Ireland squad
Kasey McAteer marked his first start for the Irish by giving them the lead in the first half but Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr struck with nine minutes remaining as it finished honours even. Hallgrimsson, though, took heart from how his side carried out his vision to largely stifle a Senegal side who are now 21 matches unbeaten and ranked 19th in the FIFA world rankings. A strong performance from the boys but tonight's friendly ends in a draw 🤝 — Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) June 6, 2025 That is 41 places higher than the Republic's current position, having been as high as 28th in October 2019, but Hallgrimsson senses this is a side on the up after making it three games without a defeat. 'There were times where we defended without the ball, we made them look quite average,' Hallgrimsson said. 'But I'm mostly happy that they didn't create a lot of goalscoring chances. 'Let's be honest, we're not one of the best teams in the world and this is how we need to play against teams that will dominate possession. 'We need to wait for our chances and take them when they come. In this area, confidence is growing. 'We will need to be patient, these steps are taken small steps at a time but this was really pleasing because if we wouldn't have done this as well as we did, we would have suffered against this team.' Kasey McAteer marked his first international start with a goal (Evan Treacy/PA) The Republic travel to Luxembourg on Tuesday in their final outing before beginning their qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup, with Portugal, Hungry and Armenia their opponents. Hallgrimsson was especially pleased with the display of Leicester's McAteer, who scored his first goal for the Irish in the 21st minute when firing in the rebound after his initial header had been kept out. 'If you've watched Kasey, he got a run for Leicester at the end of the season so you can see his club progress and he brought that into the national team,' Hallgrimsson said. 'That's always the answer you would like to have when you try out new players. 'It was a really good first start for him. He's a confident player on the ball, he has speed, good dribbling technique and if we can isolate him going one v one, that is his strength. Ismaila Sarr (centre) levelled for Senegal (Evan Treacy/PA) 'He's just a clever footballer with a good football brain; he knows where to pass the ball and not to pass the ball, etc.' A Senegal side without star names such as Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly levelled from close range through Sarr, with Hallgrimsson lamenting the absence of VAR as he felt the FA Cup winner was offside. 'VAR probably would have given it offside but we knew VAR was not in-house so we cannot complain,' the Icelander added. 'I think the referees did a good job, there was a really good flow in the game, so I was happy.'
Powys County Times
3 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Confidence is growing within Republic of Ireland squad
Republic of Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson believes 'confidence is growing' within his side after a 1-1 draw against Senegal at the Aviva Stadium. Kasey McAteer marked his first start for the Irish by giving them the lead in the first half but Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr struck with nine minutes remaining as it finished honours even. Hallgrimsson, though, took heart from how his side carried out his vision to largely stifle a Senegal side who are now 21 matches unbeaten and ranked 19th in the FIFA world rankings. A strong performance from the boys but tonight's friendly ends in a draw 🤝 — Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) June 6, 2025 That is 41 places higher than the Republic's current position, having been as high as 28th in October 2019, but Hallgrimsson senses this is a side on the up after making it three games without a defeat. 'There were times where we defended without the ball, we made them look quite average,' Hallgrimsson said. 'But I'm mostly happy that they didn't create a lot of goalscoring chances. 'Let's be honest, we're not one of the best teams in the world and this is how we need to play against teams that will dominate possession. 'We need to wait for our chances and take them when they come. In this area, confidence is growing. 'We will need to be patient, these steps are taken small steps at a time but this was really pleasing because if we wouldn't have done this as well as we did, we would have suffered against this team.' The Republic travel to Luxembourg on Tuesday in their final outing before beginning their qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup, with Portugal, Hungry and Armenia their opponents. Hallgrimsson was especially pleased with the display of Leicester's McAteer, who scored his first goal for the Irish in the 21st minute when firing in the rebound after his initial header had been kept out. 'If you've watched Kasey, he got a run for Leicester at the end of the season so you can see his club progress and he brought that into the national team,' Hallgrimsson said. 'That's always the answer you would like to have when you try out new players. 'It was a really good first start for him. He's a confident player on the ball, he has speed, good dribbling technique and if we can isolate him going one v one, that is his strength. 'He's just a clever footballer with a good football brain; he knows where to pass the ball and not to pass the ball, etc.' A Senegal side without star names such as Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly levelled from close range through Sarr, with Hallgrimsson lamenting the absence of VAR as he felt the FA Cup winner was offside. 'VAR probably would have given it offside but we knew VAR was not in-house so we cannot complain,' the Icelander added. 'I think the referees did a good job, there was a really good flow in the game, so I was happy.'
