MAROUANE Fellaini and Thomas Meunier, the Belgian players nearest to Hal Robson-Kanu, were still facing the opposite way as the Wales striker drew back his left foot and curled the ball past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
Gareth Bale’s long ball upfield had been controlled on the right side of the penalty area by Aaron Ramsey. And when the Arsenal midfielder’s cross found Robson-Kanu 12 yards from goal, the moment of magic he produced would have been befitting of either of Wales’ two outstanding players who’d combined to pick him out in a scoring position.
With his back to goal, he performed the deftest of Cruyff turns to flummox the attendant Belgian defenders, before calmly finishing to gives Wales the unlikeliest of two-goal leads in the quarter-finals of Euro 2016, against one of the pre-tournament favourites.
The 27-year-old forward had let his contract at Reading run down that summer. Going into the tournament, that appeared ill-advised – his shop-window opportunity began with him carrying an ankle complaint to France and starting Wales’ campaign on the bench. But after two goals at the finals, including arguably the best of the summer, to double his international tally, Robson-Kanu earned a Premier League opportunity when he was signed by West Bromwich Albion.
But the striker’s fairytale story paled in comparison to the narrative Wales played out at Euro 2016, the first major tournament they’d qualified for since the 1958 World Cup.
The Home Nations Championship ended 1984, and Wales hadn’t won it since 1937. But with their run to the semi-finals of the European Championship – going two rounds further than England and Northern Ireland while Scotland didn’t qualify – they were the best of British.
Their success owed much to the brilliance of Gareth Bale. The Real Madrid superstar, at 26 years of age, was at his peak at the time, having just led Los Blancos to Champions League glory for a second time. He’d scored seven of Wales’ 11 goals in qualifying for the Euros and, with three strikes and an assist at the finals, was joint runner-up in the race for the Golden Boot.
Wales captain, @GarethBale11, gives his highlight of Euro 2016. ⚽#Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/QXpOTov57u
— BBC Sport Wales (@BBCSportWales) June 7, 2021
But Wales were far from being a one-man team, and their remarkable rise, in retrospect, was a slow-burn triumph of steady progress.
Under previous manager Gary Speed, Wales had risen in the FIFA World Rankings from 116th to 58th. Chris Coleman took over in January 2012 after Speed’s tragic death the previous November, and shortly before Euro 2016, they rose as high as ninth, one place above England.
And the Welsh Dragons were drawn against the Three Lions in the group stage. After goals from Bale and Robson-Kanu had given them an opening-round win over Slovakia, Bale again scored – this time with a trademark dipping free kick – to give Coleman’s side the lead against England. But second half goals from Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge handed the Welsh a last-gasp 2-1 loss.
That would be the last time they would taste defeat until the semi-finals, though. Wales hammered Russia 3-0 in their final group game to top the four-team table and book a place in the last 16. There, they saw off Northern Ireland, 1-0, to set up a date in the last eight with Belgium and their “golden generation” of Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard.
A spectacular early strike from Radja Nainggolan looked like signalling the end of this giddy Welsh run. But a thumping Ashley Williams header provided an equaliser after half an hour. Robson-Kanu and Sam Vokes struck in the second half to give Wales their most famous victory.
By this stage, hysteria was sweeping the rugby-loving nation. Fan zones were created around the country for mass-viewing events. The Principality Stadium in Cardiff housed 27,500 fans in front of a big screen to watch the semi-final against Portugal. Another 10,000 congregated in Swansea.
It wasn’t just their incredible string of results that had captivated the nation and neutrals alike, however. This Wales squad appeared to enjoy a uniquely strong bond, a natural kind of camaraderie and togetherness most managers crave to cultivate.
“It's just like being with your mates all the time, being on holiday,” Bale said at the time. “We do everything together. We all enjoy spending so much time with each other.”
“Without the drinking, we treated it like a lads’ holiday,” midfielder David Edwards told The Guardian recently.
“Chris Coleman was adamant to everyone: ‘You’ve just got to enjoy it.’ It was about enjoying every single moment, getting a coffee together or going to play golf after training, doing stuff that was fun, and then later in the tournament we were allowed a few more drinks. It was really a group of mates who were willing to run through brick walls for each other and for their country.”
Two second-half goals in quick succession, from Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani, meant the final chapter of Wales’ fairytale was written one step short of ultimate glory. But the manner with which they upset the odds ensured what they achieved in the summer of 2016 will be remembered as one of the great underdog runs in recent international football history
