Heroes and Villains: Exciting Euro 2016 qualifying shocks and thrills

Gareth Bale
Wales have been reliant on their wing wizard in qualifying and, against the world’s second best team according to FIFA rankings, Bale produced the goods again to vitally topple Belgium 1-0. Chris Coleman’s men are now 11/10 to secure qualification for the tournament in top spot.

The rapid Real Madrid attacker showed great composure to take the ball down on his chest and clinically slot home to give the Welsh a crucial 1-0 victory, proving the La Liga wideman hasn’t been affected by a recent onslaught of criticism regarding his apparent poor domestic form.

Villains

England defence
Despite securing an important away win against Slovenia, the Three Lions rearguard endured an extremely poor night which could have cost them points, if not for the brilliance of Wilshere and the eventual killer instincts of Wayne Rooney.

The entire backline were poor, especially for the opening goal, as Phil Jones literally threw the ball away deep in the hosts’ half, while Chris Smalling was caught out of position, and Chelsea’s Gary Cahill opted to apply a hopeless offside trap, which gifted Milivoje Novakovic with acres of space to score.

Kyle Lafferty
The towering Northern Ireland frontman was expected to continue his fine form in front of goal in their showdown with Group F leaders Romania, but a scoreless draw on the road sees Michael O’Neill’s men sit a point adrift of their latest opponents.

Lafferty spurned several chances to grab a potential winner for his nation and should have been more clinical, having already netted five times in qualifying, but his night, along with Northern Ireland’s, ended in frustration.

Faltering Irish
Martin O’Neill spoke of his Boys in Green showing their true potential in this crucial qualifying clash with the Scots, but again the Irish failed to deliver a much-needed triumph on home soil. Throughout their campaign, late goals have been a key feature, but Ireland were haplessly held to a 1-1 draw.

Jonathan Walters looked to have given Ireland a commanding position to build upon, but sloppy build-up from the midfield in possession and an evident lack of killer instinct saw a stuttering stalemate be played out on home turf. Ireland are now 13/5 to secure qualification for the competition in France.