To peel Page believes Aaron Ramsey could be wales Luke Modric working effectively in a deeper midfielder role.
Modric still dictates games Croatia and 37-year-old Real Madrid find space in deep spaces and unleash the forwards with their superior passing ability.
“I was watching Sky Sports News for Modric after the World Cup but he didn’t retire,” Boss Page joked before the opening of the Euro 2024 qualifiers for Wales against Croatia. Divide Saturday.
But Page is serious when talking about Ramsey, who was appointed captain after Gareth Bale quit football and improved his game at the age of 32.
Ramsey has built his reputation at Arsenal as a goal-scoring midfielder who knows when to run perfectly into the opponents’ penalty area.
But Page says that Ramsey, who had a good season in Ligue 1 Nice, could be used differently in a campaign that saw Armenia, Croatia, Latvia, Turkey and Wales competing for the two available spots for the tournament in Germany.
“Aaron can play multiple positions,” Page said.
“He played against the USA in the World Cup against a very athletic trio, and when you look at the distance he’s covered, he’s matched with them, he’s not behind.
“We’ve also used him in a deeper role as a duo, he can do both.
“Aaron’s occasional disappointment runs deep when he doesn’t get the ball, and that keeps him disciplined.
“But he’s also the one who has the ability to make those passes to the people we’re going to play and encounter at the front.”
Wales could not have asked for a harder start in Group D to recover from their World Cup slump.
Wales have scored just once – a Bale penalty – and finished last in their group in Qatar, and Page has returned to juniors with Chris Gunter, Joe Allen and Jonny Williams also retiring from international football in recent months.
By contrast, Croatia challenged odds once again at the World Cup to show that a country with a population of only 3.9 million can be one of football’s elite.
The 2018 World Cup finalists placed third in Qatar, and Croatian players will experience a homecoming ceremony in Split by handing out commemorative scarves to wave and greet each fan.
Aaron can play multiple positions
Rob Page on Aaron Ramsey
“It’s no surprise what they did at the World Cup because they do well in big tournaments,” Page said.
“We have to be and will be at our best. Some of our best performances were with the youth against the Netherlands and Belgium.
“We qualified for the World Cup and three days later we had to go to the Netherlands.
“The gamble that forced some of the young players to play was probably one of our best performances.
We will respect them because they are a very good team but we have to try to be as positive as we can to get a result.”