First Minister Mark Drakeford has responded to FIFA president Gianni Infantino's extraordinary speech at the World Cup in which he hit out at critics of Qatar in a bizarre press conference.
The game's global governing body has been attacked for its decision to take the finals to Qatar, where the treatment of migrant workers and the rights of LGBTQ+ people have been in the spotlight.
Ahead of the tournament's opening game, which will see hosts Qatar take on Ecuador on Sunday, Infantino began his address by stating: "Today I have strong feelings. Today I feel Qatari, I feel Arab, I feel African, I feel gay, I feel disabled, I feel a migrant worker.
READ MORE: Gianni Infantino walks into World Cup press conference and unleashes extraordinary attack
"Of course I am not Qatari, I am not an Arab, I am not African, I am not gay, I am not disabled. But I feel like it, because I know what it means to be discriminated, to be bullied, as a foreigner in a foreign country. As a child I was bullied - because I had red hair and freckles, plus I was Italian so imagine.
"What do you do then? You try to engage, make friends. Don't start accusing, fighting, insulting, you start engaging. And this is what we should be doing."
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The manner in which Infantino addressed the criticism hit the headlines across the world.
Mr Drakeford, who has touched down in Qatar and even spoke with Wales' players after their training session on Sunday, believes that while Infantino's overriding message was a thought-provoking one, he should have "stopped digging" himself into a hole.
Wales' First Minister said: "I had two thoughts when I heard those comments. First of all, I think there is a serious point about being prepared to review our own history. Wales is an outward-looking, inclusive nation where people’s rights really matter to us. But it wasn’t always like that.
"In our own history, we have had times when things that we have done, including things that we have done in other parts of the world, wouldn’t measure up to the sorts of beliefs and standards that we hold ourselves to today. So to take a moment to reflect on our own histories, it’s not a moment wasted.
"The second thought I had listening to what was said was to remind me of Healy’s first law of holes. Some people will remember Denis Healey, the great labour politician. And his first law of holes was when you’re in one, stop digging."
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