Never has a tournament been harder to depart at the group stage than France 2016 and it will be no surprise to see all the major teams in the final eightYou cannot beat a tournament draw for phoney excitement,particularly one that allows commentators in the UK to reach for the Battle of Britain headlines and get busy with Gareth Bale cut-outs.
There is nothing wrong with that sort of hoopla, other than it would occupy been better suited to a knockout round assembly between England and Wales which is now unlikely to happen. While there may be a certain amount of parochial pride at stake when the two sides line up at Lens – Chris Coleman could become the first Wales manager to achieve a tournament victory over England, or Roy Hodgson’s hopes of carrying on into the next World Cup would be dented whether England do not win – it can be seen at a glance that both nations occupy a fair chance of progressing from Group B. England and Wales could win their opening games before they meet,for example, and in this tournament, or with only eight teams being removed at the group stage,that is going to count for a lot.
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Source: theguardian.com