03 February 2004 18:59
FOOTBALL: Speed would have quit hadWales lost Sparky
WALES skipper Gary Speed asked for assurances that Mark Hughes would stay as manager before confirming he wanted to
continue to be considered for the squad.
Hughes,linked with a string of club jobs since Wales lost their Euro 2004 play-off with Russia, has revealed that
Speed wanted to make sure his international manager intended to stay on. Hughes yesterday announced a 26-man squad for
the February 18 friendly against Scotland at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium that included his fellow former Everton
star and all the other 30-somethings many felt were close to retiring from international football.
Former England Under-21 skipper Ben Thatcher -who has a grandmother from Barry -was also selected, as well as fit
again Craig Bellamy.
But on Speed, the country's most capped outfield player with 79 appearances, Hughes said: ``He wanted
re-assurances about mine and the staff's future.
``I have given him those assurances and he is going to carry on.
``I have had no phone calls from people saying they do not want to be involved anymore. So we will just carry
on.''
``Nobody has made it known to me that they want to stop.
[Liverpool Echo] |
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