John Hartson makes bold Wales prediction for Euro 2020:
“I’m going to say Wales will get through the group stages although it’s a difficult group with Switzerland, Turkey and Italy. I do think they have got the quality to get through the group and get out of it, so I’m going to say last eight.
“We’re not going to quite do as well as we did in France where we got to the semi-final, but I think we could possibly get to the last eight. So, I’m going to say Quarter Finals.”
And reveals why Gareth Bale would have been his dream Wales team-mate:
“I’m very lucky because I played with the great Gary Speed, I’ve played with Mark Hughes and I’ve played with some fantastic players. But if I had to pick my dream teammate from the current Wales squad, I would have to say the modern-day superstar Gareth Bale.
“Being a centre-forward, to have someone like Gareth Bale putting the crosses in for me I’d actually be a threat to breaking his goal-scoring record for Wales because he would give me so many goals!”
Hartson was speaking as an ambassador for McDonald’s Fun Football programme, and believes the success of the Wales national team over the last five years is a testament to investment in grassroots football in the country:
“When you look at this current Wales team we have so many brilliant young players like Neco Williams, Ethan Ampadu and Matt Smith who have all come from their own grassroots backgrounds and are now about to represent their country at a major tournament. It’s a really exciting time for Welsh football and the future looks very bright.
“Every player begins their journey at the grassroots, it’s where we all discover our love of the game. The work McDonald’s is doing in this space to get kids playing football is really impressive – and this summer they’ll be giving thousands of youngsters the chance to play football for free.”
John Hartson is calling on families to sign up for McDonald’s free Fun Football sessions, which will get thousands of children playing football this summer. To find a local session go to: mcdonalds.co.uk/football.
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