Gareth Bale delighted to make England 'bite' ahead of England vs Wales meeting

Gareth Bale resumed his goading of England at Wales’ press conference this afternoon, saying that he was pleased that Roy Hodgson and Jack Wilshere had “bitten” on his comments last week and joking that no England players would get in the Wales team.

When Bale said last Thursday that Wales had more “pride and passion” than England did, the comments did not go down well with Roy Hodgson, who labelled them as “disrespectful”. Wilshere, speaking on Sunday night, said that the England team did not particularly like Wales and were stronger than them too.

Bale returned to face the media this afternoon at a press conference at Wales’ base at Dinard, before Wales face England in Lens on Thursday, and while he denied taking part in “mind games”, he said that he was pleased with the effect that his comments about England had had.

“It is good that they bit,” said Bale with a smile. “I never said that they didn't have passion and pride, I just feel in my opinion that we have more. I'm sure they have their opinion that they have more also. I'm happy with my comments. I feel we've got a massive team spirit, one of the best I've seen. That is just my opinion. I just feel whether it’s football or rugby or whatever sport it is, in Wales we seem to have that next level.”

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Hodgson said in response to Bale’s initial comments that they were “disrespectful”, a claim that Bale denied. “People can say what they want,” Bale said. “Someone said I disrespected England, which wasn’t the case. They’re entitled to their opinion. I really don’t care what they say to be honest. If they feel they have the better squad, good for them. We know that we are a good team and we can beat them on our day.”

It was Wilshere who said that England have more quality than Wales, and when Bale was asked today how many England players would get into the Welsh side, his answer was clear: “None”.

Aaron Ramsey also took the stage at the converted leisure centre where Wales do their media opportunities, and he echoed his team-mate’s comments.

“[Jack Wilshere] is entitled to his opinion, but I believe we have the best team,” Ramsey said. “We have been through a lot over the years and we are seeing the rewards for that. We fight for each other, we work our socks off for each other. Everyone saw that in the qualification campaign, and in first game of Euros.”

Traditionally Wales would have been the underdog for this game, but they are two points ahead of England in Group B, and Bale said that they are closer to England’s level than ever before. “We know they’re a bigger nation with more players to choose from but we’ve closed the gap massively,” Bale said. “We know they’re a good team and, I’m sure if they put in a good performance, they’ll feel they can beat us and we’re exactly the same. If we work well as a team, we feel we can win.”

Despite his comments directed towards England, Bale said that ‘mind games’ were not part of his thinking. “For me there are no mind games,” Bale said. “We focus on ourselves, other people like to comment on them. For us as a team, as a camp, we don’t look into it. Nothing fazes us, we don’t feel any pressure, we just want to enjoy the occasion.”