JOE Ledley believes Wales have earned the respect of the football world by reaching the quarter-finals of Euro 2016.

Chris Coleman’s men will take on Belgium in the last-eight on Friday night after edging past Northern Ireland 1-0 on Saturday thanks to Gareth McAuley’s own goal.

The UK derby was a poor spectacle with Wales below their best throughout but Ledley says the rest of the teams in the competition will have to take them seriously now.

“I hope we get the respect we deserve because we have come a long way,” said the Crystal Palace midfielder.

“We were ranked eighth in the world at one stage and we can play good football – the performance against Russia was some of the best stuff you will see.

“But we have shown we can dig in and fight when we need to, like in this game. We will work together as a unit.

“I think we are showing we are a serious player on the world stage,” he added. “To reach the quarter-final of a tournament like this means serious business.

“We are not here to mess around. We want to be here as long as we can and we are relishing every moment so hopefully people can respect us.”

Ledley has wowed the nation with his energetic celebratory dancing in France but he admits seeing his children after Saturday’s win in Paris really moved him in a different way.

“It was very emotional,” he said. “I have been away from the family for a long time.

“I managed to see my eldest last week and my youngest was there [on Saturday].

“That is the first time I have seen them in over 20 days, so they are very emotional times, we have done them proud and to be away for so long you want to make sure it was worth it and that is what we are trying to do, go as long as we can.

“It is tiring and very hard but we have a great team here and that means it is worth it.

“Without this team spirit I don’t think we would be coping with it or achieving what we are achieving.

“Being with these boys day in day out is great. They are the best I have ever worked with. We have come a long way, been together since the age of 17 and we now need to stay strong and commit everything to every game. This was a battle and we came through.”

South Wales Argus: