Wales head coach Robert Page spoke about the emotions he experienced during the end of the 2022 World Cup qualifying round play-off match against Ukraine (1:0), which took place on June 5 in Cardiff. Recall that the victory in this meeting brought the Welsh national team to the final part of the World Cup.
“When the final whistle blew in the match with Ukraine, the emotions were, of course, the best. I have a long career behind me as both a player and a coach, which I enjoyed to the fullest, but nothing will ever give the feeling that I experienced during the final whistle in the match against Ukraine. When the chief referee of the meeting raised the whistle to his lips, I experienced the best feeling in the world!
Moreover, the last 15 minutes of that match were extremely difficult for us: the Ukrainian team put a lot of pressure on us. This is a very good team that has incredible character and solidarity. Ukrainians demonstrate this not only in football, but also in life.
Therefore, in a match with such an opponent, we were obliged to show ourselves in the best possible way, not only physically, but also mentally. Only if this condition was met, it was possible to surpass Ukraine. We managed to do that that day. At the same time, our goalkeeper Wayne Hennessy was in great shape and showed, I think, a world-class game. This is the best game in his performance that I have ever seen, ”FourFourTwo quotes Page.