Gareth Bale: The night ‘unplayable’ Wales star tore Iceland apart
The fact that Bell was there was a statement in itself. He had just played in an intense Madrid derby three days earlier, but contrary to expectations of a brief cameo in this friendly match, he started.
Gabbidon said: “The thing people say about Ryan Giggs is he was so good for Manchester United and he wouldn’t be in games in a Wales shirt and he wouldn’t miss friendlies and things like that, but with Gaz You will never encounter a situation like this.”
“He was so driven and focused, not only for the club but also for the national team. At that time he was just in charge of the game himself.”
In the 12th minute, Bell scored the first goal from a free kick on the right side, perfectly bypassing James Collins’ shot.
“I think we were all lining up for that cross. If he didn’t cross, I was right next to James Collins ready to pass the ball,” said Woakes, who didn’t have to wait long to get his chance.
Iceland equalized late in the first half when Williams converted Johann Berg Gudmundsson’s shot into the back of the net, but Wales regained the lead after the break. Bale, of course, is at the heart of it all.
Bell received the ball on the right, pretended to cut inside, broke through Ali Skurasson and accelerated before shooting with the outside of his left foot.
Only Kari Arnason’s superb block on the goal line prevented Bale’s wonderful individual goal, but the ball simply bounced up and Woakes nodded.
“I only had to make it from one yard out,” Woakes recalled with a smile. “I don’t know what you do as a defender. No one could stop him at that point.”
As a centre-back, Gabidon has a keener awareness of the situations Icelandic defenders have to face.
“I feel sorry for some of the teams that played against him because he just couldn’t play,” he said.
“He also has a lot of desire for himself. Sometimes you see players who like to play for their club and maybe slow down for their country.
“But Gas was not like that. It was the same in a Wales shirt, there were a lot of games in that period, not just the Iceland one. We were almost like a one-man team.”
