I Am Proud Of My Player -Chris Coleman

Wales manager Chris Coleman declared himself proud of his players after they held on to draw 0-0 against Republic of Ireland on Friday. Neil Taylor was sent off for Wales in the 69th minute for a lunging tackle on Seamus Coleman that saw the Everton defender carried off on a stretcher with a broken leg.

The draw leaves Wales in third place in World Cup Qualifying Group D at the halfway stage, four points behind joint-leaders Ireland and Serbia.

He said “It was a typical British derby, I thought 11 v 11 we really controlled the game and weren't really in any trouble. We were the team who looked like we were going to create something and score. The red changed everything. We are in their backyard and they are very strong and the crowd are fantastic. We were up against it for 20-25 minutes but I am proud of the players. They battled through and dug in. We had to show a different side of our game, from controlling it and passing the ball we had to go to a defensive game and see it out which we did. I know where we are in the group, but there are still five games to play. I can't look at our players and say you need to give us more. A bit of luck here and there, and a bit more quality in the final third, and the result would have been different.”