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Wales' Gareth Bale, right, and Wales' Aaron Ramsey celebrate after scoring during the Euro 2016 Group B soccer match between Russia and Wales at the Stadium municipal in Toulouse, France, Monday, June 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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For favorites at Euro 2016, with 16 of 24 teams advancing to the knockout round, the group stage has turned into a collection of pre-tournament friendlies.
But don't tell Chris Coleman. Not for Wales.
While England and Roy Hodgson experimented and tinkered their way to a 0-0 draw with Slovakia, Coleman, the Welsh boss, developed a series of tactical plans as shrewd as any others at the competition. And the result? A 3-0 win over Russia, six points, very nearly more, and the top spot in Group B.
Here's how Wales did it.
TACTICS TALK
Wales employed a five-man back line for all 270 minutes of the group stage. But throughout those 270 minutes, Coleman has tweaked the scheme based on his opposition. On Monday, he outcoached Russian boss Leonid Slutsky in every sense of the word.
Without the ball, Wales sat in a 5-3-2, as it has for much of the tournament. The Welsh midfield three of Joe Allen, Aaron Ramsey and Joe Ledley tracked Russia's three whenever possible, shutting down service into them and from them into the strikers. The Welsh forwards, Gareth Bale and Sam Vokes, then funneled the ball into the middle of the field, cutting off wide avenues with the shape of their runs towards Russia's center backs when in possession.
In doing so, Wales took advantage of Russia's most glaring attacking weakness: the ball-playing ability of those center backs. Wales forced Sergei Ignashevich and Vasili Berezutski to ping passes into tight spaces, something neither is comfortable doing, and effectively baited Russia into attacking futility.
Going forward, Wales took advantage of a lagging, mentally-checked-out Russian midfield. Wales found success playing direct to Bale and Vokes. It was the bursting runs of Allen and Ramsey, however, that really wounded Russia. Those runs often weren't tracked, and either Allen or Ramsey, time and time again, found themselves in possession, with space, dissecting a back four playing a high line that was 40 yards from goal. That's how Wales found its opener.
Joe Allen has had a rather inconspicuous few years. Upon his arrival at Melwood for his Liverpool medical in 2012, manager Brendan Rodgers infamously dubbed him "the Welsh Xavi." But Allen never really lived up to the moniker. His physical deficiencies were exposed, and he never exhibited the tidy passing game that had made him such a coveted player at Swansea City.
Allen became an afterthought for many. But on Monday, he put in a performance that evoked the "Welsh Xavi" label. Given space by a dragging Russian midfield, Allen threaded a beautiful ball to Aaron Ramsey to set Wales on its way.
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Ramsey goal vs Russia. pic.twitter.com/993LTnXakp
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Now down a goal, Russian heads began to slump, legs began to drag and transitions became slower and slower. It was only a matter of time before Wales took advantage again.
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And again.
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Some of the recovery runs from Russian players after losses of possession were downright embarrassing.
SLOVAKIA VS. ENGLAND
England manager Roy Hodgson made six changes to his lineup for the group finale against Slovakia. He swapped out both fullbacks and both attacking-minded midfielders. He also brought in Daniel Sturridge and Jamie Vardy, the goal scorers against Wales, for Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling. And he paid the price.
It's not that England was terrible. This isn't a time for panic. The Three Lions have probably outperformed their point total and could easily have won all three games. But on the other hand, England was one fluke Slovakia goal away from a round-of-16 date with Germany or Spain. That would've been disastrous.
Hodgson's squad rotation is the continuation of the trend, though. French manager Didier Deschamps approached his team's group finale similarly. With such a large percentage of teams progressing out of the group stage, the first three games are, for some, no longer solely about winning. They've become about figuring out the formula for winning further down the road.
With England slipping up, group winner Wales will draw a third-place team from Group A, C or D. England will get the runner-up from Group F, which could be any of Hungary, Iceland, Portugal or Austria. Slovakia, in third place on four points, is all but guaranteed of a knockout stage spot as well but will have to wait at least one more day to have its place confirmed.
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