Assistant coach Robert Page spoke of his – and manager Ryan Giggs’ – pride after Wales beat Finland to secure Nations League promotion.
Page oversaw Wednesday’s 3-1 triumph as Giggs had agreed with the Football Association of Wales he would not be involved in this month’s matches.
Giggs, who has denied an allegation of assault made against him, called Page after the game to congratulate him.
“I am extremely proud of that group of players, as is Ryan,” said Page.
“He is extremely proud of the players and how they’ve gone about their business and how they’ve handled the camp.
“To show the resilience which they’ve shown and to win the group in the manner in which they’ve done, he is a very, very proud man.”
Former Wales Under-21s boss Page, who joined Giggs’ senior coaching staff last year, was in charge for three matches this month in the manager’s absence.
After a goalless friendly draw with the United States, Wales beat the Republic of Ireland 1-0 on Sunday and prospered in Wednesday night’s Group B4 decider against Finland.
Victory extended Wales’ unbeaten run in competitive matches to 11 – the longest in their history – and secured promotion to the Nations League’s top flight for 2022.
Winning their group also enhances Wales’ chances of securing a place in the 2022 World Cup qualifying play-offs.
Should they miss out on automatic qualification or a play-off place for the tournament in Qatar, their status as Nations League group winners means they are virtually guaranteed a play-off spot via an alternative route.
“We did not take this campaign light-heartedly. We have gone into it with the intent of winning every game and we knew the rewards were there for us at the end of it,” said Page.
“It’s so pleasing the players have achieved that. We can potentially get a play-off place for the World Cup and that’s a great achievement.
“Baleo [Gareth Bale], Chris Gunter, Ben Davies before he left, Wardy [Danny Ward] and the senior players have been exceptional.
“They have not let the standards drop. We started this together and we finished it all together.
“I was proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with them tonight and get the job done.”
