Paris, Jun 26: Gareth Bale was the creator of the only goal an own-goal to put Wales into the European Championship quarterfinals with a 1-0 win over Northern Ireland on Saturday.
Bale’s cross was aimed at teammate Hal Robson-Kanu but it was inadvertently tipped into the net by Northern Ireland defender Gareth McAuley in the 75th minute.
It was a quiet first half for Bale, the tournament’s co-leading scorer, as Wales failed to register a shot on target in a low-quality first half.
Stuart Dallas came close to putting Northern Ireland in front in the 10th minute but his swerving strike was turned around the post by Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey.
The ball did go in the net once in the first half, but Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey was in an offside position.
In a drab British derby, it was the Northern Irish looking more dangerous in front of goal at the Parc des Princes in the first half of their first major tournament since the 1986 World Cup.
But Wales was more dangerous after the break and will next play either Hungary or Belgium in the quarterfinals in Lille on Friday. It will be the first time Wales will contest a quarterfinal match since the 1958 World Cup, its last appearance at a major tournament.
“They are really organised,” said Bale, who danced with his daughter on the field after the win. “We had to be patient. They were probably the better team today. We had to hang in there and show a lot of courage.”
“It’s devastating really,” Northern Ireland coach Michael O’Neill said. “To lose as we did, the nature of the goal is very disappointing.”
Two days after Britain voted to leave the European Union, this was a very British occasion at the heart of Europe.
The referee was also English Martin Atkinson and the Parc des Princes field was groomed by a Northern Irish groundsman.
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