‘It was really slow… the ball was bobbling’: Ryan Giggs slams the Aviva Stadium pitch after his Wales side were held to dull goalless draw against 10-man Republic of Ireland in the Nations League
- Wales were held to a goalless draw by Republic of Ireland in the Nations League
- Ryan Giggs slammed Sunday’s Aviva Stadium pitch, claiming it was ‘too slow’
- Ireland had James McLean sent off but Wales barely threatened to score
- Giggs’ men were without injured captain Gareth Bale but Aaron Ramsey played
Ryan Giggs bemoaned the quality of the Aviva Stadium pitch after Wales were held to a goalless draw in Dublin by 10-man Ireland.
The result suited Wales better than their hosts, as Giggs’ men strengthened their position at the top of Nations League Group B4, with seven points from a possible nine ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Bulgaria.
Yet Ireland created the better chances of a desperately dull match as Wales, without injured captain Gareth Bale, rarely tested the home side, who had James McClean sent off in the 83rd minute.
Ryan Giggs critcised the quality of the Aviva Stadium pitch as his Wales side drew with Ireland
Wales were held to a goalless draw in Dublin with Giggs slamming the pace of the pitch
‘I went on the pitch at the end and it was really slow,’ said Giggs. ‘It was hard to get into our passing rhythm – we had to force the ball. We were sticking passes in and the ball was [bobbling] in front of the lads.
‘We didn’t keep the ball as well as we can. I’m happy with the result but the performance wasn’t great. We have to show better composure although we have to be happy with seven points from three games.’
Wales were due to take their latest round of coronavirus tests on Sunday ahead of the match in Bulgaria, having reported no issues for the Ireland game.
Wales had Aaron Ramsey (right) back after injury but captain Gareth Bale remains sidelined
Ireland, by contrast, were beset by Covid-19-related problems. Five players missed the game after one tested positive for the disease on Friday. Adam Idah and Adam Connolly had already been ruled out due to another Covid matter.
The pair were set to feature in Thursday’s Euro 2020 play-off game in Slovakia but were ruled out shortly before kick-off after being deemed to have been in close contact with a member of the backroom team who tested positive for Covid-19.
Giggs added: ‘We had no concerns. We knew before the game what had happened but all we could do was concentrate on what we could do. What had happened with Ireland was out of our hands and we had to go out and perform.’