He can’t get a game for his club, but at Euro 2020 is Danny Ward of Wales…Cream of the Keepers?
You can’t affect what other people think,’ reflected Wales goalkeeper Danny Ward yesterday, in the aftermath of his country qualifying for the last 16 of the Euros.
‘That’s something that was instilled in me from my childhood. People are going to have opinions and there’s nothing really which epitomises that more than football. You’ve just got to keep believing in your own ability.’
He related this philosophy calmly, in the midst of a conversation about the squad enjoying the Italian coffee and the high quality of the tomato sauce that comes with the pasta in Rome.
Wales goalkeeper Danny Ward has been one of the picks of the Euro 2020 tournament so far
Leicester ‘keeper Ward has impressed with his aerial ability, communication and distribution
Ward’s impressive tally of saves at Euro 2020
But there must have been many dark moments, these past few years, when the notion of being integral to Wales’ progress in this tournament seemed utterly delusional.
It is approaching 1,500 days since the 27-year-old last started a club league game — for Huddersfield against Reading in the 2017 Championship play-off final.
It was the last game of a very strong season he’d had on loan from Liverpool but did not bring a breakthrough. He left Anfield a year later for Leicester, where Kasper Schmeichel has been a roadblock to his progress since.
The reassurance of those who know him best — his father Greig and his former Wrexham youth coach Joey Jones were two he mentioned yesterday — seems significant.
‘My mindset has always been about being No 1,’ he reflected. ‘If you’re sat on the bench you don’t want to have a mindset of doubting yourself. That’s why we all want to play football.’
Positive thought is immaterial without the talent he has shown since displacing Wayne Hennessey in Wales’ warm-up game against France.
Ward has repeatedly saved with feet and gloves, competed well aerially and displayed the calmness under pressure to gather hard, low shots through a forest of players.
He is a communicator and an excellent distributor. A flat 50-yard kick from his hands — one of his trademarks — was a main route to Kieffer Moore against the Swiss. In fact, there are strong grounds to argue that Ward is the pick of the tournament’s keepers to date.
The only one to have matched his number of saves is Turkey’s Ugurcan Cakir, who has also conceded more than any other keeper, owing to his team’s lamentable defence.
There have been some phenomenal performances from Hungary’s Peter Gulacsi — ‘Pete the Wall’ — who earned his nation a point against France. Finland’s Lukas Hradecky has also impressed.
Ward, Kasper Schmeichel’s Foxes backup, has not started a league game for almost 1,500 days
The 27-year-old has displaced 96-cap international Wayne Hennessey (centre) for Euro 2020
But ahead of last night’s games, Ward stood out in the top 10 of goalkeepers by save percentage, with 13 saves from 15, or 86.67 per cent. Hradecky’s percentage is slightly higher, although he’s had fewer saves to make.
Ward reflected that fatherhood, which is new to him, has provided some healthy perspective. Sitting in the Stadio Olimpico changing room after Wales had qualified on Sunday, it struck him that it was Father’s Day and he must call his 20-month-old son, Alwyn.
He was having his bottle and getting ready to go to bed. ‘It’s moments like that you realise as a person why you want to do these things,’ said Ward. ‘I spoke to my father as well.’
But there is also something about this Wales set-up that brings the best out of some of the club game’s lost souls who have been short on game time.
Joe Morrell has been struggling to make the Luton Town team. Joe Rodon made only eight starts for Spurs last season. ‘I don’t know what it is,’ reflected Ward. ‘It must be the dragon on the shirt.
Hungary’s Peter Gulacsi has also impressed at the tournament after being let go by Liverpool
Likewise, Finland’s Lucas Hradecky (pictured) is another goalkeeper who has performed well
‘The boys like myself who haven’t got the minutes they want — we come away with Wales and I’m not sure whether it’s the camaraderie we have, the team spirit, the will and desire to do the dirty bits for your mate, but it’s amazing for us.’
Hungary’s Gulacsi offers proof that life in the club shadows does not have to last for ever.
The 31-year-old was at Liverpool for five years without one senior start — heading out on loan to Hereford United, Hull City and Tranmere Rovers before taking his career to Germany. He is now firmly established as the first choice at RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga.
Ward batted away the notion that he might expect more game time at Leicester next season. ‘When I go back whatever will be, will be. I’m sure there’ll be conversations with the relevant people.’ For now, there is only this magic carpet ride with Wales.
‘It’s something I’ve waited a long time for, being able to go out and show people what I can do on the pitch,’ he said. ‘We wanted to climb the mountain again and we’ve been able to do that. We back ourselves against anyone.’
