2) Wales
Before the start of the tournament, Group B was a foregone conclusion. Football giants England were tipped to win and Slovakia were favorites to grab the runners-up position. But, noisy neighbors Wales had other plans. The Dragon’s started their campaign with a gutsy 2-1 victory over Slovakia.
In their next fixture, they gave England a real scare and were unlucky to lose the game. Wales arrived with all guns blazing and ripped past a hapless Russia side 3-0 in their final group encounter. They topped their group courtesy of England’s draw with Slovakia. Reaching the round of 16 as group winners was a massive achievement for a country playing in its first international competition in 58 years.
They beat Northern Ireland 1-0 and booked their spot in the quarter-finals. Facing Belgium (ranked 2 in the world) was their biggest challenge yet. An inspired Aaron Ramsey led the team to a famous 3-1 victory over the perennial underachievers and found themselves facing Portugal in the semi-finals.
They held Ronaldo’s team at bay for 50 minutes, but, their fairytale came to an end after the Selecao scored twice in three minutes to knock them out of the tournament. Reaching the semi-final stage of an international tournament is no mean feat.
This was above and beyond the hopes of their most optimistic supporter. Chris Coleman and company must feel proud of what they have achieved this summer.
