Connor Roberts insists it is naive to expect Wales to qualify for every major tournament. Wales have reached the last two European Championships and the 2022 World Cup after ending a 58-year wait to play at a major tournament. But making Euro 2024 in Germany next summer was seriously dented by qualifying defeats to Armenia and Turkey in June. Wales travel to Latvia on Monday knowing victory is essential to maintain hopes of automatic qualification, although being a top-tier team in the last edition of the Nations League will offer them the safety net of a play-off place. “I think there’s a bit of a determination to not feel like we did after those previous two games,” said Burnley wing-back Roberts, 27, who is set to win his 50th cap at Riga’s Skonto Stadium. “The only way to not feel like that is to win the game or to play well. It’s just remembering what got us to be performing well and to qualify for big competitions and to win games before. “That is hard work and dedication, but I think we would be naive to think that we’re going to qualify for every single tournament going forward and win loads of games. “We are still a small nation in the grand scheme of things. So we have to keep our feet on the ground and realise where we’ve come from.” Wales have had a difficult 12 months since qualifying for the World Cup by beating Ukraine in a play-off final. The talismanic Gareth Bale retired after the World Cup, other senior players left the international stage, and boss Rob Page has come under scrutiny after one win in 13 games – a 1-0 home victory against Latvia in March. There were some positive signs in Thursday’s goalless friendly against South Korea, but the sight of Cardiff City Stadium little more than a third full with an attendance of 13,668 underlined Wales’ current malaise. Roberts said: “We find ourselves in a difficult position, but we’re still in with a chance (of qualifying) and all you can do is try and win the next game. “If, come the end of the campaign, it’s not good enough then we just have to move on and progress as a country and as a footballing nation.” Roberts reaches his 50-cap milestone after being something of a late developer in the game. He did not make his debut for first club Swansea until he was 22 following loan spells with varying degrees of success at Yeovil, Bristol Rovers and Middlesbrough. Roberts said: “There was many a time at Middlesbrough and Bristol where I laid in my bed on my own miles away from my family thinking ‘maybe I ain’t good enough to be a footballer’. “Now I have nearly 50 caps for my country and no-one can ever take that away from me. “I’ve had some unbelievable experiences – a World Cup, a Euros, a couple of goals and a load of happy times in the Wales jersey. So hopefully that can continue for a couple of years at least.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Scott McTominay stars again as Scotland close on Euro 2024 spot with Cyprus win Jos Buttler says England not taking any risks over fitness after heavy defeat Gareth Southgate won’t be swayed by ‘external reaction’ over Jordan Henderson

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Volodymyr Zelensky said he has lost count of the number of attempts on his life, comparing them to catching the Covid-19 infection. “The first one is very interesting, when it is the first time, and after that it is just like Covid,” he told The Sun in an interview. The first attempt carried panic, he added. The president of Ukraine claimed Vladimir Putin still wanted “very much” to topple him as the war raged on for 21 months. As per Russia, the deadline for that operation was by the end of the year, Mr Zelensky told the British daily. At least “five or six” plots to kill the war-time president have been thwarted as Mr Zelensky revealed the name of Russia’s latest mission to oust him from Kyiv. “First of all people don’t know what to do with it and it’s looking very scary. And then after that, it is just intelligence sharing with you that one more group came to Ukraine to [attempt] this,” he told the tabloid. “The name of the operation is Maidan 3. It is meant to change the president. It’s bye bye. Maybe it is not by killing. I mean it’s changing. They will use any instruments they have,” he said. “So that’s the idea, to the end of the year. They have even named the operation. But you see we can live with it.” The Ukrainian president added that Russia parachuted special forces into Kyiv to assassinate him on the first day of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine last year. From there began the operation to turn Mr Zelensky’s office and each of his next locations into a fortress. His closest team was handed rifles and body armour and his bodyguards shut off any access to his office using makeshift barricades and bits of plywood. On being asked how many attempts he has dodged, the president says he really doesn’t know. The Ukrainian president did not answer the question on whether or not Ukraine had also planned similar assassination plots in response to Russia. Mr Zelensky yet again denied the assessment on the conflict hitting a stalemate, which Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny said is due to technological and tactical parity between Russian and Ukrainian forces. “In the morale, there is no stalemate. We are at our home. Russians are on our land. Therefore there is no stalemate in this. As regards the sky, there is no stalemate. Russians have more power in that. And really, how to move forward when you can’t control the sky? (sic)” he told the paper. Ukrainian officials have strongly pushed back on suggestions they are in a stalemate with Russia after a long-awaited counteroffensive over the summer did not radically change the battle lines on the ground. In a visit to Washington last week, Andriy Yermak, head of the president’s office, provided no details but confirmed that Ukrainian forces had finally pushed through to the east bank of the Dnieper River, which has essentially served as the immovable front line between Ukrainian and Russian forces for months. However, as winter sets in it will become more difficult for either side to make large gains due to ground conditions. Read More What the papers say – November 21 Zelensky thanks world’s media for fostering support for Ukraine David Cameron meets Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine in first visit as foreign secretary David Cameron meets Zelensky as new foreign secretary makes first trip to Ukraine Russia admits Ukrainian troops crossed Dnipro river but says ‘fiery hell’ awaits them Ukraine declares major breakthrough in southern counteroffensive ‘against all odds’