Wales on the brink

Coleman more than fits the bill. Proudly "born and bred" in south Wales, the defender earned 32 caps for his country before his playing career was cut short by injury. He won his final cap 18 months ago near the end of his failed fightback to fitness following an horrific car crash. The reception he got in Cardiff as a last-minute substitute in a friendly against Germany was spine-tingling stuff.

Coleman, who also joined the Wales coaching staff briefly before taking charge at Fulham, has a knack of eliciting that sort of response from people regardless of geography.

But there is the impression that, in Wales, it is because he has remained loyal to his roots and as such he is a pretty good unofficial spokesman.

Coleman said: "I am very excited about the game tonight. I watched the first leg and thought the boys put in a great performance that has given them a great chance.

"At home it is all anybody is talking about. We are so close to getting through to Portugal next summer and that would be unbelievable.

"Tonight's game is the most important in Welsh football for nearly 50 years and we do not want to feel like we did the last time we got close.

"I was in the squad 10 years ago when we only had to beat Romania to get through to the World Cup finals and we didn't make it. That was a killer and it brought the whole nation down. We don't want that again."

Wales lost that game 2-1, with defender Paul Bodin missing a penalty, and he is still blamed for the defeat.

Fulham's Andy Melville and Newcastle's Gary Speed were two players involved back then who will play tonight and both are close friends of Coleman. For that pair and fellow senior professionals Paul Jones and Ryan Giggs - who has been charged by UEFA for an alleged elbowing incident in the first leg but not suspended - this play-off could be their last chance to achieve something with their country.

Coleman added: "I am still close to some of the players and will talk to them before the game.

"I know how much it would mean to Gary Speed and there will be a few of the boys who know it will be their last chance of getting to a finals."

And Coleman believes Hughes has made a lasting contribution to Welsh football. "We've come a long way from the days when we were the whipping boys of international football," he said.

"Hughes can take a lot of credit for that and I think the country is in a good position now. He will make sure everybody is properly prepared tonight and knows the game inside out. He is the sort of person the players respond to and respect."

Another proud Welshman, Robbie Savage, will sing the national anthem in his country's native language for the first time tonight.

The Birmingham midfielder has learned the words to Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau for the crucial match.

"I take no pride in saying that I didn't know the words before this week," he said. "I know my parents were always embarrassed when they saw me standing there with my mouth shut.

"But John Hartson has been coaching me ever since we came together last week and I'll be singing my heart out."

Savage is fit after Achilles and hamstring problems and said of the game: "It could be the best night of my life or it could be the worst."