Football

Chris Waddle's Euro 2016 Diary - Fairytales set to end with natural order restored

Fri, 1 July 2016, 14:11

Wales have upset the odds getting to the quarter-finals and it will be an incredible achievement if they can make it into the last four.

No matter what happens against Belgium tonight, the fact that the Dragons have already outstayed Croatia, England, and Spain, will mean stories of Euro 2016 will be preserved for future generations.

Chris Coleman’s side took four points off Belgium in qualifying for the tournament, with that man Gareth Bale scoring the only goal in the two games.  If anyone’s going to do the damage here then it’ll be him, and Coleman has had a significant boost with Ashley Williams being declared fit and Belgium facing a defensive crisis with Jan Vertonghen injured and Thomas Vermaelen suspended.

However, the Red Devils are coming to the boil just at the right time, with Eden Hazard in irrepressible form. Ultimately I see it being a comfortable win for the team ranked No.1 in Europe, and with Portugal waiting in the semis, they can dream of the final.

On the other side of the draw, I can’t wait for Germany and Italy’s heavyweight bout tomorrow night. Italy have had a great run, accounting for my fancies, Spain, although that looks set to come to an end now.

The same applies to Iceland. I’m backing France to put an end to their fairytale and set-up a mouth-watering semi against the world champions.

You can follow former England international Chris Waddle on Twitter @chriswaddle93 and make sure to follow his live and exclusive tips on the be LIVE app.

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