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Roundup: Wales lead, Russia out after Group B's final round

Xinhua, June 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

Debutants Wales advanced to EURO 2016 last 16 as group winner after defeating Russia 3-0 with six points, followed by England with five points and Slovakia four points, while Russia lost a chance to progress.

Wales, which attended a major soccer tournament after a 58-year wait, beat Slovakia 2-1 in their Group B opener, lost to England 2-1 in the second round and defeated Russia 3-0 Monday night.

Aaron Ramsey gifted Wales a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute when Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen threaded a wonderful pass through the middle for the Arsenal midfielder who evaded the offside trap and lifted the ball over the advancing Russian keeper Igor Akinfeev.

Left-back Neil Taylor doubled the lead after 20 minutes when Real Madrid star Gareth Bale found Taylor in the open. Bale sent a pinpoint pass to make Taylor one-on-one with Akinfeev. Taylor's close-range shot was incredibly denied by Akinfeev but the Swansea defender poked the rebound into the empty net.

Bale struck his third goal of the tournament when he got a through pass from Ramsey and beat Akinfeev with a deft finish in the 67th minute and sealed the win at 3-0.

Bale played a leading role in Wales' attacking with his wonderful dribbling, timely passes and powerful shots.

Russia, which beat Wales in EURO 2004 qualifying play-off and twice in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying, did not show their best. They made 13 shots, only two on target.

In another match of Group B's final round, England were held by Slovakia to a goalless draw.

England were dominant in the whole match with 27 attempts but they didn't grasp those good opportunities and failed to score.

For instance, Jamie Vardy showed his fast run with the ball before he shot, but the England striker's effort was straight into the midriff of the onrushing Slovakia goalkeeper Matus Kozacik in the 17th minute.

On 33 minutes, Adam Lallana played a sideway pass to Daniel Sturridge a few yards outside the Slovakia penalty area, but his shot from distance was blocked.

Slovakia lost a good chance when Vladimir Weiss cut inside on to his right foot in the box but he didn't quite catch his shot and Hart made a comfortable save.

For the whole game, Slovakia showed their nice defenses, blocking and deflecting shots from England.

Slovakia finished third in the group and should wait to see if they qualify as one of four best third-place teams. Endit