Nations League: Wales v Turkey
Venue: Cardiff City Stadium Date: Friday, 6 September Kick off: 19:45 BST
Coverage: Listen on BBC Radio Wales, Radio Cymru, Radio 5 Live, plus live text commentary, followed by report and reaction on the BBC Sport website and app.
Craig Bellamy’s Wales will play an exciting new style of football as they set their sights on the long-term goal of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, says Connor Roberts.
Burnley full-back Roberts played under Bellamy when he worked as Vincent Kompany’s assistant coach at Turf Moor, helping the Clarets earn promotion to the Premier League in 2023.
Bellamy, who succeeded Rob Page as Wales head coach in July, begins his reign with a Nations League game at home to Turkey on Friday.
“You can see there is a new energy around the place,” Roberts said of Bellamy’s appointment.
“Everyone is excited to see what a Craig Bellamy team looks like, how they play. It’s the same with the players. I think he’s a fantastic coach. He absolutely loves football. He lives and breathes it.
“We all love playing for Wales and we all have to impress the boss by tuning into his ideas and showing him we want to be part of something successful.”
Bellamy took his first training session on Monday, and Wales’ players have been impressed by how detailed the former captain is in his work.
As well as technical and tactical work on the pitch, Bellamy has put his squad through extensive analysis sessions in order to get them accustomed to his progressive, possession-based style of play.
Roberts has experienced this before at Burnley, saying last year that Kompany’s methods transformed his outlook on the game and convinced him to pursue a coaching career after he retires.
For now, the 28-year-old is relishing his reunion with Bellamy in international football.
“For me, it [the change] has been relatively easy. I’ve heard the messages 100 times before and I’d like to think I’m one of the cleverer boys in the squad,” Roberts said with a smile.
“Maybe it will take the boys a few meetings longer, a few camps to get every single bit of information and to know exactly what to do.
“The only way we’re going to get better, the only way we’re going to be a really good team, is if every single player in the squad, not just in the team, understands what’s expected of us.
“I’m pretty certain the work the boss and the staff, and the exact ideas they have got, is not being portrayed by other nations. They might have good players, but I don’t think there is a group of staff or a manager that works as hard as I know Craig and his staff do.
“Hopefully that bodes well and it can all come together and we can go far and reach big tournaments again.”
Having missed out on playing at a major tournament during his 78-cap international career, former striker Bellamy has set himself the target of taking this Wales side to the 2026 World Cup.
Roberts is one of several players in this squad who have represented Wales at a European Championship as well as the World Cup.
But with Wales having exited the 2022 World Cup at the group stage after a dismal showing in Qatar, Roberts says Bellamy and his players are determined to give a better account of themselves when they next qualify for a major tournament.
“He’s already referred to it and said in meetings that it’s not just a case of getting there,” Roberts added.
“We need to get there and, when we do, compete more than we have since 2016 [when Wales reached the Euros semi-finals].
“We need to go to these big tournaments and show we’re not just there to make up the numbers. The only way we will do that is if we listen to all the information and put the hours in on the pitch and in meeting rooms. That is the aim.”
After Wales play Turkey at Cardiff City Stadium on Friday, they have a second Group 4 game in quick succession with an away trip to Montenegro on Monday, 9 September.