Fourth-tier flag flying with pride on football’s biggest stage

The FIFA World Cup is, and always will be, about the best of the best. When there is a global crown up for grabs, only the elite will prove themselves deserving of competing for the ultimate prize.

Such a competition is, however, by no means a closed shop. While there is inevitably plenty of top-flight talent on show at major international tournaments, with Premier League and Champions League pedigree to be found around every corner, there is still a place for those plying their trade a little further down domestic and continental ladders.

Intrigue

Wales make their #FIFAWorldCup return for the first time since 1958! #WCQ | @Cymru pic.twitter.com/KB1kml4LLK

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) June 5, 2022

Plenty of players slipping into that category will be on show at Qatar 2022, with many hoping to see their respective nations earn favour in betting on football markets that fancy the likes of 4/1 favourites Brazil, 11/2 defending champions France and 15/2 shots England to go well. Anybody looking for football predictions and tips is unlikely to stray too far off a well-beaten path.

Intrigue is, however, offered by those who find themselves in the business of trying to upset the odds, rather than dominate them. It is here that the more compelling stories will be told, with tales of the unexpected set to be written.

Some of those could unfold within the fourth tier of the English Football League pyramid, with performers more accustomed to heading for Mansfield and Newport than Manchester and Newcastle preparing to rub shoulders with the cream of a sporting crop.

In the case of two such figures, the high life has been tasted before. Chris Gunter may now be on the books of AFC Wimbledon, but he has spent time with Tottenham in the past and has over 100 caps for Wales to his name. Sitting alongside him in Rob Page’s ranks is Jonny Williams, a man who has graced the top tier with Crystal Palace.

Well-documented struggles for fitness have contributed significantly to the talented playmaker ending up at Swindon. Said issues were, however, put to one side in some style last season, with 40-plus appearances taken in over the course of a single campaign for the first time in his professional career.

More of the same is being delivered in 2022-23, but he will fly The County Ground nest in mid-November as the chill of a British winter is swapped for the heat of World Cup battle in the Middle East.

Achievement

 | Huge congratulations to Jonny Williams and @Cymru for qualifying for the 2022 World Cup - a huge achievement!

We can't wait to see our Welsh Wizard do his thing on the biggest stage ??#STFC pic.twitter.com/t2USp49lUM

— Swindon Town FC (@Official_STFC) June 6, 2022

It remains to be seen how many competitive minutes, if any, will be taken in by the likes of Gunter and Williams, with FIFA deciding that 26-man squads can now be cobbled together. With so much depth to be found across the board, bench duty aplenty beckons for some.

Just being part of the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet is, however, a considerable achievement in itself. Only a select few get the opportunity to grace such a stage and tickets to such exclusive events should never be passed up. Superstars of the world game are expected to steal the show and spotlight on Qatari soil, but fourth-tier flags will be flown with pride in places such as southwest London and Wiltshire.