Euro 2016 qualifier: Gareth Bale leads Wales within touching distance of qualification

Nicosia Gareth Bale put Wales within touching distance of Euro 2016 and a first major tournament appearance for 58 years as the Real Madrids stars late goal clinched a 10 win over Cyprus on ThursdayBales bullet header settled a nervous encounter with just eight minutes remaining in Nicosia to keep Wales top of the Group B and a victory against Israel on Sunday will guarantee their place in next years finals in FranceGareth BaleWales last qualified for a major tournament at the 1958 World Cup with legends like Ryan Giggs Ian Rush and Mark Hughes all denied the chance to showcase their talents on the biggest stage due to their countrys struggles But that long and painful spell in the international wilderness could well be consigned to the history books in Cardiff this weekend thanks to the latest heroics from former Tottenham forward Bale whose sixth goal of the qualifying campaign extended Wales unbeaten run to seven matches The champagne is on ice for Chris Colemans team who sit three points ahead of secondplaced Belgium and five clear of thirdplaced Israel with three games remaining While this was a hardly a vintage display against a Cyprus team ranked a lowly 82 in the world the joyous celebrations among Bale and his teammates at fulltime underlined that the result was all that mattered It was always going to be difficult The pitch was woeful it was hot and humid and the opposition had nothing to lose Coleman said It wasnt one of our better performances But its a huge three points There was a lot of pressure on us and the players handled it magnificently Bale added It was more than tough but we were able to nick a goal that has put us in a great position We know what we have to do This is a golden era for Wales they havent lost a competitive game for two years and the latest FIFA rankings placed them above England for the first time everEven so Coleman had challenged his players to prove they could cope with the pressure of sealing qualification and their nerves were stretched to the limits by a determined Cyprus and a rutted pitch that tested even the best techniques Surging Wales threatened first with Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey curling narrowly over the crossbar from 25 yards out after a surging run from BaleBale caused more chaos with a dipping freekick that was spilled by Antonis Georgallides towards Neil Taylor who should have scored from closerange but saw his tame effort blocked by the Cyprus goalkeeper Cyprus appealed in vain for a penalty when Nestor Mytidis tumbled in the area after being bundled over by Ashley Williams After getting the benefit of that decision from referee Szymon Marciniak Colemans side thought they had taken the lead in the 27th minute when David Edwards headed home Bales cross But this time the Polish official ruled against Wales as Edwards effort was disallowed for Hal RobsonKanus push Although Wales were mostly on top they still lived dangerously at times and Antreas Makris was left unmarked on the edge of the area to drill over Early in the second half Marios Nikolaou tested Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey But the last time Wales won in Cyprus in 1992 Coleman was playing and the manager proved a lucky charm again as the visitors got back on top Ramsey was denied by a fine Georgallides save before Bale finally broke the deadlock in the 82nd minute with a towering header from Taylors cross to put Wales on the verge of an historic achievement