Wales seals 1st place in Group B with confident win over sorry Russia

A country that came so close to qualifying for previous major tournaments, Wales has finally made up for lost time at Euro 2016, roaring to an emphatic 3-0 victory over Russia on Monday to seal first place ahead of long-time rival England in Group B.

Related: England blows chance to win group with banal effort against Slovakia

Just being in France was a triumph to savour for many of the thousands of supporters who travelled from anywhere between Cardiff and Wrexham to witness history. It was a first-time experience for a new generation. The last time the Welsh had participated in a showpiece event was 1958, when a teenage Pele scored against them in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

But the talent in this team is unmistakable, and it proved too much for Russia in Toulouse.

"I've got to say how proud I was of my players," said manager Chris Coleman. "As a nation geographically we are small, but if you judge us by passion you could say we were a continent tonight."

Aaron Ramsey took control of matters for the Welsh, dropping deep to pick up the ball and running up the pitch to initiate the play. The opening goal was an exercise in timing, with the Arsenal midfielder keeping himself in an onside position before latching onto Joe Allen's pass and chipping a shot past goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev in the 11th minute.

Related - Watch: Ramsey chips Russia 'keeper to give Wales early lead

The 25-year-old then started the move that led to the second marker. Gareth Bale received the next pass and dished it out wide to Neil Taylor, who converted his own rebound to score his first goal in more than six years.

Taylor's last goal at any level came for Wrexham in non-league football - a barren run dating back to April 2010.

At that point, Russia had been all but defeated. They had to record a win over the Welsh to have a chance of qualifying for the next round. No such victory arrived, and they didn't deserve anything more than the single point they managed to steal from their Group B opener against England. Defensively, Russia was far too weak to compete at this level.

Bale added to the misery when he toe-poked his third goal in three matches, making the 26-year-old Wales' highest goal scorer in major tournaments.

Wales will now face the third-place finisher from Group A, C, or D on Saturday in Paris.