Welsh football legend Mickey Thomas gives his say on Wales’ hopes for EURO 2020

With EURO 2020 now underway, thousands of supporters would have been jetting off, checking into their hotels and expecting a great summer of football.

But unlike five years ago in France, where Wales captured the hearts of the nation on their way to the semi-finals, this year’s tournament will be watched by many from home, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, among them will be former Welsh international Mickey Thomas.

Thomas was one of a number of players who missed out on playing in a major tournament, despite playing for his country over 50 times in a 10-year period between 1976 and 1986.

Other big names include Ryan Giggs, Mark Hughes Ian Rush, Neville Southall and the late Gary Speed just to name a few.

But after 27 qualification campaigns and 383 matches after Wales last played in a major competition, the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, where they were defeated by Brazil in the quarter-finals, they finally ended their hoodoo with the first game at major finals in 58 years when they took on Slovakia at Euro 2016.

That summer will never be forgotten and has been an instrumental reason in Wales’ rise to qualify for back-to-back Euros for the first time in their history.

Wales are currently in Baku preparing for their first match of the tournament against Switzerland later today (June 12) ahead of further games against Turkey on June 16 before travelling to Rome to take on Italy four days later.

“They took so long to get there before, it’s nice to play the so-called great teams, but I think Wales will go far in this tournament, there’s no question about that,” Thomas began.

“I feel very confident with the squad he’s (Rob Page) got assembled. There’s a lot of youth in there. Certainly, one or two experienced so I’m excited.

“But for the fans especially and the heartache we’ve had over the years and we are qualifying more which is great.

“It’s down to the players, of course, and the managers of the Wales team. The times have been probably the best times around for a very long time because we had missed it.

“The Welsh are very proud of their achievements and as a nation as well. We are not a big nation but we are certainly punching our weight.”

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Later this summer Thomas will be celebrating another milestone. It will be the start of his 50-year association with the game.

Thomas grew up in the small village of Mochdre in Conwy in North Wales and it was his talent for football that helped him escape growing up in poverty.

And it was Quinton Hazell, a local factory, who brought him his first pair of boots.

But his determination to succeed saw him become a successful left winger for the factory’s Conwy League men’s team at 13, before signing for Wrexham at the age of 15.

“I wasn’t very good in school, and I was very fortunate to get that opportunity,” he said.

“I dedicated myself to being a football and I worked extremely hard. If you asked anyone about my fitness, I was the fittest,

“I dedicated myself to getting match fit and a chance of making it professional in the game. I was lucky I think you need to have that little bit of luck along the way.”

Thomas was handed his debut on New Year’s Day in 1972 at the age of 17 and it was with the North Wales outfit where he would enjoy some of the club’s greatest moments in their history.

First, he was part of the side’s run to the FA Cup quarter-finals two years later, where they were defeated by Arsenal.

Before a couple of years later he was part of Wrexham’s run to the European Cup Winners Cup last eight, where they would lose to eventual winners Anderlecht.

In the same year, he made his debut for Wales against reigning World Cup Champions and European Championships runners-up West Germany on October 6 1976 at Ninian Park.

Despite the game ending in a 2-0 defeat against the Germans, it fulfilled a childhood dream.

“It’s the best thing ever, as a young kid growing up you dream about being a professional footballer, you also dream of playing for your country,” he said.

“When that comes around it’s a great moment in your life, certainly for your family, it’s fantastic you never forget your first game.

“It was a great honour to play for your country, there’s no bigger honour than that. I was fortunate to play a long time for the Welsh National team.”

Now a Welsh international, his talent wasn’t going unnoticed and in his final full season with Wrexham, he was part of the side’s successful Football League Third Division championship in the 1977-78 season.

And it was a £350,000 offer from Manchester United which prized Thomas from Wales to England.

Thomas admitted his time with was tinged with a sense of regret and pride of what he achieved in his three years with the Red Devils.

“It was fantastic, I found it difficult to handle the pressure of playing in front of 58,000. I played a lot of games in a short period. I’ve done well. Some people only play one game for United.

“I played 110 games and scored 15 goals which was a fantastic achievement. I could have done better if I had someone to help me through my problems.

“Now in modern football, they have people looking after you. I felt a little bit lonely at times, I was a bit nervous about going out on the pitch.

“People might find that hard to believe but that was my way. When I grew up, I wasn’t that confident but I came over confident but that was a bit of a front.

“People thought I was confident but I really wasn’t. I wish I could have stayed there longer I wanted to go I had to leave I needed to get back playing without a football.

“Without doubt playing for Manchester United is a different level there is more pressure playing for that club. Expectations are so high.”

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After leaving Old Trafford, Thomas headed to Everton and would play for another nine clubs, which included the likes of Chelsea and Leeds United before he re-signed for Wrexham in 1991.

A few months later Thomas was part of the side which had drawn Arsenal in the third round of the 1992 FA Cup.

Wrexham had finished bottom of the entire Football League the previous season, and in normal circumstances would have been relegated to the Football Conference but the Football League expanded its competition in time for the 1991–92 season meant there would be no demotion.

As for the Gunners, they were the reigning First Division champions and headed to the Racecourse expected of picking up the victory.

For Thomas it was the third time in his career he had come up against Arsenal in the FA Cup, the first a quarter-final in 1978, where Arsenal won by three goals to two, before one year later in the FA Cup Final.

The game, dubbed as the five-minute final, saw three goals scored in the last five minutes as United clawed back to level the game at 2-2 before Alan Sunderland’s last-ditch winner saw the Gunners pick up the trophy.

But in 1992, in which Thomas describes it as “third time lucky”, he called the victory against Arsenal as the “biggest FA Cup shock in history”.

Alan Smith had put the London side into the lead as half-time approached and it looked like the game was running away from Wrexham before 37-year-old Thomas stepped up to smash home a free-kick in the 82nd minute.

And a couple of minutes later Steve Watkin popped up to complete the turnaround and make history.

“They were massive, we produced a second-half performance to win us the game,” added Thomas.

“People talk about that every time to me. I’m on BBC, Match of the Day, every year because they always show my goal. That never goes away.

“That will live in the memory of every Wrexham fan who was there that game. I only watch it around 300 times a day now (laughs).”

These days Thomas works as an after-dinner speaker and provides analysis on all Manchester United matches.

But there have been a number of events in the modern game which have given a cause for concern. Most notably online abuse for Welsh internationals Ben Cabango and Rabbi Matondo, and in the Schalke 04’s winger’s case he has been racially abused twice in a matter of months.

“We are all different, people must understand that when we are on that football pitch, we are human beings, we have feelings, but because you are on that football pitch no one can see that,” Thomas said.

“They think you have got to be perfect but no one is perfect, no one ever will be and you just to have accept sometimes in the way they are performing. People have to realise that we are human beings on that football pitch, trying to win the game for your team.”

With one eye on the time, as Wales are due to play France, our conversation drifts back to Wales and the time he spent with his country.

Thomas gave a decade of service, where he picked up 51 caps and scored two goals, his first one came against England when Wales won 4-1 at the Racecourse, Wrexham, in 1980, which Thomas said was “one of the highlights” of his career.

But some “bad decisions” deprived him of playing a World Cup and at the European Championships, one notable one was at Anfield in October 1977 against Scotland.

“A clear handball by Joe Jordan, obviously he didn’t own up to it, they get the penalty and they win the game,” he said with a sense of sadness in his voice.

“It was a huge disappointment; I still feel hurt we missed out. I don’t mind getting beaten fair and square but we were robbed, we were cheated going out of a World Cup.

“I’m still hurting that we never got the chance to play in a major tournament. As a player you want to play at the highest level you want to play for your country, you want to play in the big tournaments. We were robbed of a lot of them, which still hurts today.”

So near, yet so far was a common theme in six decades for Wales with Paul Bodin’s penalty miss against Romania and their European Championship’s play-off defeat against Russia still linger in the memory.

Despite Euro 2020 being Wales’ only ever third qualification to a major tournament, Thomas says times have never been better and will be watching with excitement.

“At this moment in time I think Wales football is certainly on the up and we are very strong as a nation,” he added.

“The team (Page) has assembled is good. I think the youngsters will take advice from Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey and all the experience will certainly help them along the way.

“That’s a very good thing a good blend of experience together in one dressing room. Experienced players will calm the youngsters down going out ahead of going against the best teams.

“We have got good youngsters coming through, the production line over the last two has been absolutely outstanding.

“They keep giving these youngsters an opportunity to play and that’s a big bonus. They are not scared to play them. If they are good enough, they will play them and that’s what I like about the Welsh set up.

“We are capable of giving anything against anyone. I’ve seen it in the past why not now. With Bale and Ramsey available, with that experience of knowing how to win games I think these youngsters will come on and really do well.

“I’ve got no problem with the games coming up I think the big challenge will be Wales because they know Wales can produce results.”

But for Thomas when asked about his time in the game and how would he sum it all up, he added: “I’ve enjoyed it. I had a long career I could have been a lot less hot-headed. I always played from the heart and I always gave 110%, you can’t ask more than that I can look back and say, “yeah I have had a good career.”

(Featured Image: Lewis Mitchell)