Wales vs Portugal: James Collins trusted to add character to Chris Coleman's defence in Euro 2016 semi-final

The West Ham United defender has played precious little football in the last few months

(Getty)

Wales manager Chris Coleman said that the defender he has made the big decision to field against Portugal on Wednesday night is no “choirboy” but the biggest character of those fringe players who have missed out on a role in the European Championships so far.

Coleman has decided to field West Ham United’s James Collins in place of the suspended Ben Davies, of Tottenham Hotspur. Collins has had very little football – last appearing for West Ham in the home win over Tottenham on May 2.

But Coleman said of the player on Sunday that he was loud, a strong on-pitch presence and that had potential to drive the team on against Portugal.

When deliberating over whom to replace Davies with, Coleman said on Sunday: “He is the closest to my era that I have seen in the modern day player. He is older than most of our boys. He has been there and seen it. He has that experience and is a bit different. They can't all be like choirboys. You need something in there that's a little bit different and he is that.”

Coleman and Collins fell out in 2013, when the manager accused the player of failing to play for his country when asked. Coleman said at the time: "I was disappointed in James. I like James. He's a good man, but my job and how I see it and with the importance of players turning up for any Wales game - I didn't like that.” But the centre half insisted that he had not received a request to play Macedonia and Serbia and was recalled a month later.

Collins, universally known as ‘Ginge’ in the squad, did a good job when sent on late in the game against Belgium on Friday night, dealing with aerial balls over the top to Marouan Fellaini, last Friday. But he is less mobile than Davies at the task of pushing forward to help out the midfield.

Coleman said: “I thought they were hitting Fellaini on the big one all the time, so I said to Ginge, 'Just stand with him. That's your job for five or however long minutes.' And he came on and his mind was right, because he's trained hard. So if it is the big man on Wednesday, I won't have a worry. He knows the drill, he knows what's needed and I'm sure he'll give us whatever he's got.

“Whoever comes into a position who hasn't played so much, that'll be in our thoughts. It has to be, even if you're a defender, because the games are fast. But it's not a problem. If the big man slots in, I won't have any worries."