Williams Eager for Rest Following Grueling Campaign

Wales and Nottingham Forest defender Neco Williams has expressed his satisfaction with the rigorous demands of a marathon season, though he is now anticipating a long-deserved period of relaxation. The 25-year-old was instrumental in the recent 1-1 draw against Ghana, a World Cup-qualified side, playing the full 90 minutes in Cardiff.

Williams is poised to reach his 63rd appearance of the campaign across club and international duty should he feature in Saturday’s friendly match against Romania in Bucharest. Reflecting on the workload, Williams remained positive. "It is tiring, but this is what we get paid to do and we enjoy it as well, so I'm happy with that," he stated. "As a footballer you want to play as many games as possible. If I played only a couple of games then I wouldn't be happy, but to play that amount of games means you're doing something well."

The Wrexham-born player was a cornerstone of Nottingham Forest’s efforts last season, appearing in 53 matches to help secure their Premier League status and advance to the Europa League semi-finals. His performances earned him the club’s Player of the Season award, and talks regarding a contract extension have already begun.

Williams emphasized the professionalism required to handle such a schedule. "It's physically and mentally tough, but we're professional enough to deal with what gets put in front of us," he explained. "If that's games every other few days or the travelling, we're prepared for that and I've enjoyed it."

Looking ahead, Williams outlined his immediate plans for downtime. "I'll be going straight on holiday, having a few cocktails and putting my feet up on the beach. We'll get a couple of weeks off and then straight back into it."

On the pitch, Williams contributed significantly to the Ghana match by delivering the cross that allowed substitute Lewis Koumas to score a late equalizer at Cardiff City Stadium. Williams, a former Liverpool defender, was delighted to assist Koumas, who had been on loan at Hull City this season, in netting his first international goal.

"He's been waiting for that moment for a while now," Williams said. "I'm glad he's got it. I'm glad I assisted it."

Despite the point, Williams acknowledged that more goals could have been scored. "We had a few chances and on another night we score more goals. But we have to take the positives, build on that, and then just focus now on the next one." He added that the team is motivated to reverse their recent form. "We know our summer record hasn't been the best, so we want to finish the season off with a win."

Source: BBC News Generated at: 2026-06-03 11:16:13 UTC