""Preparation for this was crazy. I'm not going tell you before it," he said with a knowing grin. "Some players turn up on Sunday, transfer deadline day on Monday and a few of our boys were involved. Then we travelled Tuesday, trained Wednesday one session. Four hours' time difference, artificial pitch. It's so new. "Some players are playing, some players are not. It adds to the excitement, but I was a little bit more in the unknown than I would usually like to be.""
"Bellamy would rather be in control, just as he would prefer his team to control matches. That is exactly what Wales did in the first half but, in the second, they allowed their opponents - ranked 114th in the world - back into the game and came perilously close to becoming the victims of a momentous result for Kazakhstan. This was not a vintage performance and Bellamy did not try to hide that fact."
Craig Bellamy repeatedly demanded "no excuses" ahead of a 7,000-mile round trip World Cup qualifier in Kazakhstan that involved last-minute transfers, injuries, and only one training session before departure. The Welsh squad faced a four-hour time difference and an unfamiliar artificial pitch on arrival. Wales controlled the first half but lost momentum after halftime, allowing 114th-ranked Kazakhstan back into the match and nearly conceding. The performance lacked vintage quality, but Wales secured a 1-0 victory. Bellamy prioritized the result over stylistic concerns and planned recovery and preparation for the next fixture.
Read at www.bbc.com
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