Leicester City midfielder Andy King has said that Wales are ready for the physical challenge of playing Cyprus in their upcoming Euro 2016 qualifier.

The Dragons earned a 2-1 victory over their opponents when they met in Cardiff last year, but the visitors were criticised for a number of heavy tackles on Gareth Bale.

King, who was sent off in that match for a high challenge on Cyprus captain Constantinos Makridis, has said that he expects another tough night when they meet again in Nicosia, and that his side must be prepared.

"When playing a team that wants to kick us they need to understand we're going to kick them back," King told BBC Sport. "They might be thinking they can get away with a little bit more than what they did over here [in Wales].

"Hopefully that goes for us as well from my point of view. We'll be expecting a tough game. They are a good side - a strong, physical team. We've got to make sure we're ready for that.

"In the first game that's what got our backs up, the way they were targeting [Bale]. They thought they could do anything without us doing anything back. My red card was a mistake and something I've learned from but we need to be prepared because that's probably going to happen again. We're ready to give them a bit ourselves as well."

Wales are currently three points clear of Belgium at the top of their Euro 2016 qualifying group.

Written by
Alex Meyers