Craig Bellamy: Wales World Cup qualification hopes alive despite loss to Belgium
Craig Bellamy insisted Wales' hopes of qualifying automatically for the World Cup were far from over despite their dramatic 4-3 defeat to Belgium.
Wales lost a seven-goal thriller in Brussels after fighting back from a 3-0 deficit, only for Kevin De Bruyne to deliver a gut punch two minutes from time.
It was Bellamy's first defeat in 10 games in charge and Wales were also knocked off top spot in Group J by North Macedonia, 1-0 winners in Kazakhstan.
Belgium are three points behind Wales with two games in hand, and will visit Cardiff in October for the return fixture.
The group winners will qualify automatically for next summer's finals in Canada, Mexico and the United States, with Wales almost certainly guaranteed a play-off place through their Nations League results.
Wales manager Craig Bellamy said, 'I think I read something from the Belgium media – 'an easy way to the USA'?
'There's a lot of life in this group and today I saw a lot of life in this team. We aren't going anywhere.
'I will have a couple of weeks now of recharging but I'm beyond proud and really excited about the future.'
Belgium led 3-0 inside 27 minutes through Romelu Lukaku – a controversial penalty awarded after De Bruyne's shot hit the hand of Brennan Johnson – Youri Tielemans and Jeremy Doku.
Harry Wilson gave Wales hope from the penalty spot ahead of the break before Sorba Thomas, with his first Wales goal, and Johnson put the visitors back on level terms.
'I don't like losing. I understand the game but how you lose is more important.
'Who are you as a person? Who is your team? I see that and I'm beyond proud. We're a good team.
'To come to a top-eight team and can we play the way we want to play? I think the Belgium players saw it as well. I won't tell you what we discussed," said Bellamy.
Bellamy had promised to go on the attack in Brussels before the game and not sit back and defend against opponents ranked eighth in the world.
He said, 'I understand results, I really do. But football means more to me than that. It always has done.
'I'd rather try something great and fail than do nothing and succeed. I've always been that way.
'I might not be great at anything but I'll try to be. It means more. I liked that.
'I said I wasn't coming to sit back, it's not in my nature, don't do it … it's not our culture, it's not who we are.
'So for me it was, 'can we come to a top-eight team in the world then and come and play?'.'
Wales' next World Cup qualifier game is against Kazakhstan in September.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
16 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Michael O'Neill: Northern Ireland feeling positive ahead of World Cup qualifiers
Isaac Price fired O'Neill's side in front after 36 minutes and later made a key goal-line clearance as Northern Ireland won a match in which they finished with 10 men for the first time since the famous victory over Spain in 1982. It was perhaps not the match O'Neill had envisaged going into the night as Northern Ireland spent the vast majority of the final half-an-hour defending following Spencer's dismissal, but the win felt more significant given it came in the face of adversity. Morning, GAWA 💚🤍 Thank you to all 18,021 of you that made it another special night under the lights 👏🏻 #GAWA — Northern Ireland (@NorthernIreland) June 11, 2025 O'Neill will take the positives from that as he turns attention to September's qualifiers away to Luxembourg and Germany. 'We approach it in a good place and we approach it with optimism,' O'Neill said of the qualifying campaign. 'I think there's a belief in there that, yes, we will be able to go and take points at this level. We look forward to it.' O'Neill's squad remains both young and in large parts inexperienced. Twelve of the 25-man squad for Tuesday's game were 21 or under, and more than half remain in single figures for the number of caps they have. Having been drawn alongside Germany, Slovakia and Luxembourg in Group A, Northern Ireland's realistic target is second place and a play-off spot, but O'Neill's optimism extends well beyond the next six games. 'I know the team will continue to progress beyond the World Cup campaign,' he said. 'It's just natural that the team will continue to progress. The more they play international football, the better they'll get at it. 'That's all they need – they need more and more exposure, they need more minutes under their belts. Will the world Cup campaign come too soon for this group? I don't know. The proof will be in the games.' As had been expected ahead of the fixture, Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Denmark in Copenhagen showed where Northern Ireland need to improve out of possession. Spencer's red card turned Tuesday's friendly into a similar exercise for much of the second half. When asked what his main takeaways from the week were, O'Neill said: 'I think we're going to go into games where we're going to come under a lot of pressure, teams that will come and press us. 'We have to be better than what we've shown in both Copenhagen and then here in terms of how we deal with that. But the other side of our team is our ability to play on the counter-attack, our ability to run without the ball, our desire in our shape and structure. 'We've a lot of things, when we look at the two games, where we'll find a lot of positives. But we're always looking for it to get better. This is still very early in the progression of this team.'
The Guardian
16 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Jordan's long road to World Cup qualification took a strange diversion
Would Harry Redknapp have taken Jordan to the World Cup had the 2018 tournament featured 48 teams instead of 32 and Asia had eight spots instead of four? It is an interesting question but the former West Ham manager's short time in charge in 2016, not long after Ray Wilkins had the job, is not a subject anyone in the capital, Amman, is much focused on at the moment. 'Redknapp and Wilkins? Now is not the time to talk about that,' said a smiling Jordan Football Association official on Monday. The reaction given the country has just qualified for a first World Cup and is in serious party mode is understandable. Before Tuesday's game at home to Iraq the sky above Amman's International Stadium came alive with drones displaying images of King Abdullah II, crown prince Al-Hussein bin Abdullah II and then a fighter jet, a tank and '2026'. It was impressive, and it is doubtful many of those present were also contemplating an image of Redknapp driving away from Jordan's training, winding down the windows to chat about the World Cup with waiting journalists before turning past the shisha bars and restaurants on Al Shahid Street and heading back to his hotel. In March 2016, Redknapp was brought in for two World Cup qualifiers against Bangladesh and Australia. It was a short-lived rollercoaster, more of a gyro drop really, an 8-0 win followed by a 5-1 loss. There cannot be many international coaches with a higher goals per game average. Redknapp wanted to extend his contract if the team reached the third round of qualification but Jordan were fifth of the eight best group runners-up and only the top four went through. These days, they would be in the final stage. Wilkins had been appointed in September 2014, taking his former Manchester United teammate Frank Stapleton with him. His five-month contract was not extended after Jordan did not make it out of their group at the Asian Cup the following January, finishing third behind Japan and a talented Iraq team. A year later Redknapp followed. Hiring English coaches was the doing of the Jordan FA president, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, who challenged Sepp Blatter for the Fifa presidency in 2015. None of it really worked out. Wilkins and Redknapp were not around long enough to do much. 'I haven't got a magic wand. I can't come here and suddenly go: 'We're going to play like Brazil,'' Redknapp said. 'If I can get another 5% to make the difference I'll be delighted.' He was right. There isn't a magic wand and although the expanded World Cup helps, Jordan's qualification is not all about that either. 'This achievement comes after years of hard work from players and the Jordan FA,' said the team's Moroccan coach, Jamal Sellami. 'This historic qualification is for all the people who believed in us.' The improvement has been slow and steady. A solid mid-ranking team that long enjoyed being a stubborn underdog and giving more illustrious opponents a bloody nose in Amman have become something more. The 2023 Asian Cup was testament to that. Jordan won their first knockout games at the tournament and outclassed Jürgen Klinsmann's South Korea in the semi-final before losing to the hosts, Qatar. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion The coach Hussein Ammouta had much to do with it. The FA appointed the Moroccan in June 2023 instead of looking to Europe. He had a fine résumé, if one little known outside the Arab world, having secured continental prizes at club and country level as well as domestic trophies. Under him Jordan were happy to let opponents have possession and ready to take advantage of mistakes and be devastating on the counter. Attackers such as Yazan al-Naimat and Rennes' Musa al-Tamari, a rare Europe-based player, though that may change soon, lit up the tournament. Ammouta left in June 2024, citing family reasons, and there was some annoyance when he was appointed by the UAE club Al Jazira a few weeks later and much stronger feelings when it looked as if he might take the Iraq job in April. This was not only down to rivalry but also because the two were fighting it out for the second 2026 World Cup automatic qualification spot in Group B behind South Korea. Ammouta decided against it. His successor, Sellami, sealed the deal last week with a 3-0 win in Oman. Five days later, Iraq came to town for the final group game, a dead rubber. The party was alive, flags flying from cars heading to the stadium, billboards showing congratulations and fans talking of who they want at the World Cup. Brazil, Portugal, Argentina and Spain were mentioned. England were high on the list too and, if it happens, then it will be a perfect time to talk about Redknapp, Wilkins and their Amman adventure.
Belfast Telegraph
28 minutes ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Why the Irish FA showed a lack of respect to one of Northern Ireland's World Cup heroes
Peter McParland is one of the finest players in Northern Ireland history. He scored five goals in the 1958 World Cup inspiring the team to the quarter-finals and deserves the country's thanks and respect.
