World Cup qualifier: Wales v Liechtenstein
Cardiff City Stadium Date: Friday, June 6th Kickoff: 19:45 BST
“This might be similar to displaying a firework.”
An explosive player, a combustible personality. As Craig Bellamy was named his nation’s new head coach, one Football Association of Wales (FAW) official’s words captured the sentiment of many people.
But few could have anticipated the fire that he has since lit under Welsh football.
The 45-year-old is demonstrating to the modern-day football world that there is more calm than curled lip.
Less than a year on from his appointment, the national side look transformed on the pitch, while subtle and significant changes in the background have helped re-ignite hopes of returning to a major finals.
Liechtenstein will take on Wales on Friday for what could be a crucial match between the top two seeds of the group, before the bid for the 2026 World Cup is resumed.
A “more visible” emblem for Wales
The first changes started at home.
Bellamy informed officials that he would return to his hometown of Cardiff to begin his position and that he would be the first manager of the national team to live and work there.
But for Bellamy, there was no other way.
He felt like he had to be on the ground to spread his mission statement, which included how he wanted the side’s identity throughout all levels of the grassroots, as well as among office staff at the FAW base in the Vale of Glamorgan.
“He is very visible”, is how one official put it, with no-one in any doubt of the hours being put in and the way Bellamy leads by example.
The difference will not only be seen by those on the payroll, but also by those who work there.
Whereas some predecessors were criticised for not being seen outside of international windows, Bellamy is at games, club training grounds, and at numerous events throughout Wales reaching out to supporters – often helping local clubs raise money for facilities.
There were numerous Ymlaen (‘forward’ in Welsh) roadshows to discuss the vision of his and the FAW.
And then there are the hours at Dragon Park, Wales ‘ national development centre on the outskirts of Newport, either working with analysts – it was no joke when he said he had studied eight of his first opponents Turkey’s games before his official unveiling – or with age-grade sides.
When Bellamy first got the job, he already had a depth chart prepared for all of the available senior and intermediate players. He saw his job as knowing every player coming through, too.
Every little advantage that might make a difference for Wales as a football nation is a result of the former forward’s obsessive desire for details, for every detail.
Bellamy “has altered the way I view football,” Bellamy said.
On the pitch, it took less than a minute for Bellamy to demonstrate how he had transformed Wales.
It was already obvious that things were going to change in his opening game, last September’s Nations League game against Turkey, just moments before the start of the campaign.
Players were taking up new positions and changing them fluidly, building play from all areas of the field and, whenever possession was lost, they launched into a rapid – but organised, collective – press to win it back as quickly as possible.
Turkey, who had just finished third in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals, was outplayed and had a chance to escape with a goalless draw.
Wales fans could scarcely recognise their team from the one which had been held by Gibraltar and thrashed by Slovakia that summer.
After initiating this transformation with less than a week of training, Bellamy boldly declared, “This is the worst we’re going to be.”
Players were instantly impressed by the level of detail in Bellamy’s team meetings and struck by how different – and meticulous – his tactical approach was to his predecessors.
Harry Wilson, Wales’ top scorer and arguably their best player under Bellamy, says, “He’s definitely changed the way I see football.” “I watch games differently now, the way he sees it”.
Bellamy gave these concepts to coaches last month who were preparing for their Uefa certifications with the FAW. The enormous, packed conference room at the Celtic Manor hotel was silent as World Cup and Champions League winners hung on his every word.
Bellamy is a football obsessive who excels when it comes to discussing current trends in the game of football or renowned coaches and teams.
He is a great admirer of Pep Guardiola – but quick to note he is “not a little Pep” – while he often refers to the valuable lessons he learnt while playing under Sir Bobby Robson.
Bellamy’s appointment of Piet Cremers, the former analyst for Manchester City, as an assistant coach for Wales illustrates the Guardiola effect.
Bellamy worked with Cremers as part of Vincent Kompany’s staff at Burnley, and he credits the ex-City captain who now manages Bayern Munich as one of the important figures in his coaching career, having also served as his assistant at Anderlecht.
Bellamy is fiercely independent, but he is aware of his own thoughts, which are informed by valuable learning from working with some of the game’s brightest thinkers.
It is why he rejects talk of being an underdog, or of Wales being a small football nation punching above its weight.
Given the regularity with which the team has qualified for major tournaments in recent years, Bellamy believes that this is a nation that merits its place at the top of the sport’s elite, which she also wants everyone else to believe.
The head coach and his players set out to win every game, no matter who they are playing, and that ambitious mindset has permeated through the FAW at all levels.
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Ground rules, unity and demands of ‘ perfection ‘
Bellamy quickly laid out some of his fundamental principles in those initial weeks.
One has hit the headlines in recent weeks with the revelation players are forbidden from swapping shirts.
It goes even further. Shirts and kit are not only kept but looked after under the demand that ‘ no badge touches the floor’.
Other off-the-pitch tenets are present.
Some were in place before his arrival, such as no mobile phones at the dinner table and players only ending meal time when the captain calls it, all stretching back to the Together Stronger days that have helped maintain a unity in the Wales camp relatively unique to international football.
But the purpose of rules is to make them. Bellamy – as with his on-field instructions – wants there to be a ‘ why’.
Take the shirt because it’s based on the idea that you’ve worked too hard to sell it, which serves as a subtly self-aware reminder to players.
And while it is hard to shake off the image of Bellamy the dictator based on his playing past, many of the introductions have been done with culture in mind, of thinking differently.
There is no public dressing-down for those who are late, though there is importance placed on timekeeping, whether for training or the numerous meetings.
Bellamy has spoken about being intrigued by elements of Japanese culture, telling those who are early to park their car further away to leave spaces close by for those running behind, to create a sense of consideration.
With his squad rotation, he consistently changes his team and gives players a chance. This has strengthened the sense of unity. Now, they all feel part of this group.
Bellamy also places a lot of emphasis on body language, which must, in his opinion, be “perfect.” Sulking and throwing your arms up in disgust during games will not be tolerated.
Those who don’t adhere to the rules won’t be berated, but they won’t be with this squad for long.
Bellamy wants his players and staff to enjoy themselves and he has fostered a strong feelgood factor within the squad, though he still has an aura. Even in silence, everyone is aware of Bellamy’s intrusion into the room.
And perhaps more than anything, there is an intensity to everything Wales do. Every meeting requires total concentration, training is intensive, and days are organized.
The explosive coach who found tranquility in his position.
Bellamy the coach might surprise those who are more familiar with Bellamy the player.
The former forward had a stellar career and represented clubs like Liverpool, Manchester City, and Newcastle United. Yet while there were many notable achievements and memorable goals, Bellamy’s spiky, confrontational nature meant he was blighted by controversies on and off the field.
He appeared to have carried some of those traits when he took over as Cardiff City’s under-18s coach after the club made a bullying allegations against him.
Bellamy denied and disputed the allegations and was not the subject of any disciplinary proceedings, but did issue a statement at the time saying he was “truly sorry” if he had offended anyone.
Opposition coaches criticized Bellamy’s aggressive behavior on the touchline, while FAW sources claimed that Bellamy’s fiery temper was one of the factors for his dismissal from the Wales job in 2018 .
When he played for Wales, Bellamy was so intense in his demands for high standards that some of his team-mates have admitted privately that they feared training with him.
Bellamy mellowed, though, and he has since learned from his errors.
He worked with sport psychiatrist Steve Peters towards the end of his playing career, which helped him process his grief following the death of his friend and former team-mate and manager Gary Speed.
Bellamy now speaks with the calmness of someone who has spent a lot of time analyzing themselves and their mental health.
He got away from the glare of British football to work with Kompany in Belgium, a period he looks back on fondly as giving him “peace”.
Bellamy refers to his time spent with Kompany as an “education,” and it is obvious that his former Manchester City team-mate’s composure has reacted negatively to it.
Bellamy now brings that calmness to his role as Wales head coach. He is mature and thoughtful.
Several people at the FAW have been struck by the change, speaking glowingly about his demeanour with youth players and staff, as well as his considered approach to coaching.
Bellamy seems content, despite his natural ambitions, and his work with the national team shows this.
related subjects
- Wales Men’s Football Team
- Football
