MX23RW : Monday, December 30 15:22:55| >> :600:1048239:1048239:

Gareth Bale looking to beat England to top spot in Group B

Gareth Bale targets top spot in Group B at the European Championship finals, as Wales look forward to their first major tournament in a generation.

Wales forward Gareth Bale has insisted that his side are not at Euro 2016 to simply make up the numbers, and will instead look to progress into the knockout stages as Group B winners.

The Red Dragons, who will be competing at their first major finals in 58 years, are pitted in a group containing England, Slovakia and Russia.

In what is an expanded tournament this time around, finishing in third place could be enough for tournament rookies Wales to secure a place in the round of 16 in France.

Despite lacking the pedigree since qualifying for the World Cup in 1958, Bale has set his sights high with less than a week to go before his side's opening fixture against Slovakia in Bordeaux.

"We're not going there just to make up the numbers," he told BBC Sport. "We want to win every game that we play, we want to win the group and give ourselves the best chance. No matter who we play we feel confident in our abilities we can win. We'll go out there and try and do that.

"We all feel like brothers and will literally do anything for each other. We've all been together for such a long time and get on really well. We know each other's games and we all fight for each other on the pitch."

Bale will play a maximum of 45 minutes for Wales in their only Euros warm-up fixture with Sweden on Sunday afternoon, having been granted time off following his Champions League exploits with Real Madrid.

ID:274170: cacheID:274170:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2457:
Written by
Daniel Lewis
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Sweden's forward and team captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates after scoring his second goal during the Euro 2016 second leg play-off football match between Denmark and Sweden at Parken stadium in Copenhagen on November 17, 2015
Read Next:
Coleman relishing Ibrahimovic test
>
Read more about Gareth Bale Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool18143145172845
2Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest1911442619737
3Arsenal18106235161936
4Chelsea18105338211735
5Manchester CityMan City199463226631
6Bournemouth198652923630
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle188553021929
8Fulham197842825329
9Aston Villa188462629-328
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton186842726126
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1973941281324
12Brentford187383232024
13West Ham UnitedWest Ham196582335-1223
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd186482124-322
15Crystal Palace194872027-720
16Everton183871524-917
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1944113142-1116
18Leicester CityLeicester1935112242-2014
19Ipswich TownIpswich1826101633-1712
20Southampton1913151239-276


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!