King Looking Forward To Facing 'Top' France Side
- Andy King says he is looking forward to Wales’ friendly clashes with France and Panama
- The Academy graduate has made 43 appearances for his nation to date
- King wants Wales to recover from their disappointment of not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup
The Euro 2016 semi-finalists head to Stade de France for the first of two friendly games in four days, with a clash against Panama in Cardiff also coming up on Tuesday.
France, currently ranked seventh in the FIFA standings, are unbeaten in their last five fixtures and King says he has plenty of respect for the 1998 World Cup winners.
“France are one of the top teams in the world,” King told the media on Tuesday prior to Friday’s game.
“They’ll be one of the favourites going into the World Cup and this is one of those games you want to play in – against one of the top teams in the world.”
Chris Coleman’s men fell short of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, but Academy graduate King believes his nation have the ability to swiftly bounce back.
“It’s been tough to take,” said King. “We worked our way back into the group and thought the form would follow through into the last game. It’s now about us getting back together and dealing with the disappointment.
“The only way to get over disappointment is to get back on the pitch and get that winning feeling back. We’re looking forward to next campaign and we don’t want to suffer that disappointment again.”
King has made 43 appearances for Wales and says he is more than willing to share his experiences to help develop the newest members of Coleman’s squad.
“We’ll get to see a glimpse of the players coming through over the next week,” continued King. “It’s good to get them in young as we can pass on our experience to them and they’ll be ready to slot into the team.
“They have a good head on their shoulders and are willing to learn. From what I see in them and their league form, they’re ready to take their chance."