Wales will want to continue their dream run in Euro 2016 when they face off against one of the pre-tournament favourites – Belgium – in the quarterfinals in Lille. Gareth Bale and co. have done remarkably well to get this far in the tournament, and while many will consider what they have achieved so far as a success, the only remaining Home Nation will want to ride that wave of momentum and go one step further.
Doing that will not be easy, however, because they are coming up against a Belgium team who seem to be peaking at the right time. While that feeling of "a bunch of individuals rather than a well-knit team" still exists, all the major players seem to be coming to the fore in the business end of the tournament, and such is their talent going forward, that they can get past Wales, and even beyond that, on individual brilliance alone.
Get the highlights and goals of the match HERE
To do that, the onus lies with the likes of Eden Hazard, the captain, Kevin De Bruyne, the playmaker extraordinaire, and Romelu Lukaku, the big No.9. Hazard was quite impressive against Hungary, while De Bruyne has looked good in most matches for Belgium. Lukaku can frustrate and excite in equal measure, but on his day, he can be unplayable.
That is one of the reasons why Chris Coleman will be happy to have a fit and ready Ashley Williams, because the Wales skipper will be key to keeping Lukaku quiet.
While Belgium are a team of talented individuals, Wales are the opposite – a well-drilled, cohesive unit, ready to put in a shift for the entire 90 minutes and stick to the plans that were laid out at the start of the match.
Wales do have their superstars, of course, chief of them being Bale, who is looking forward to this clash against Belgium, a team Wales beat in the European Championships qualifiers.
"We know Belgium are a very good team with a lot of good players and yes, we're excited by it," Bale told UEFA's official website. "It's an occasion we want to take in our stride and enjoy.
"We came to the finals to play in big games, and though we've already got very far in the tournament, we want to go further. We're going to try to go out and enjoy the experience and play as well as we can, and hopefully that will get us the win."
If the win does come in the 90 minutes, it looks like being a narrow one, considering the two matches played between the two teams in the Euro 2016 qualifier had a grand total of one goal. The first match in Brussels ended in a goalless draw, while Wales beat Belgium 1-0 in Cardiff.
Hopefully, those shackles will be removed and we will get to see a Belgium team at their attacking best and a Wales side, with Bale and Aaron Ramsey in tow and Joe Allen pulling the strings in midfield, in perfect harmony going forward.
Where to Watch Live
Wales vs Belgium -- Euro 2016 quarterfinal -- is scheduled for a 9 p.m. local time (12.30 a.m. IST, 8 p.m. BST, 3 p.m. ET) start. All the live streaming and TV information is below.
India: TV: Sony Six/HD and Sony ESPN/HD. Live Streaming: Sonyliv and ESPN.in.
UK and Ireland: TV: BBC One and S4C. Live Streaming: BBC iPlayer. Radio: BBC Radio 5 Live.
Belgium: TV: Een, RTBF and La Deux. Live Streaming: Sporza.
France: TV: TF1 and Bein Sports 1. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Connect.
USA: TV: ESPN 2 and ESPN 3. Live Streaming: Watch ESPN.
Canada: TV: TSN1 and 3 and RDS. Live Streaming: TSN TV.
Australia: TV: Bein Sports Australia 1. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Australia Connect.
South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa: TV: SuperSport 3. Live Streaming: SuperSport
Malaysia: TV: Astro.
China and Hong Kong: TV: CCTV and LeTV.
Thailand: TV: Channel 3 and CTH.
Latin America: TV: DirecTV.
Middle East and North Africa: TV: Bein Max 1, 2 and 3. Live Streaming: Bein SportsConnect.
Singapore: TV: Eleven Singapore, ABS-CBN and Singtel. Live Streaming: Singtel Go.
