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IF you want a forthright, honest verdict, look no further than Craig Bellamy,
and our Wales striker pulled no punches after the 2-0 home defeat by Finland
...
Daily Mirror
"Lame old story from the Welsh"
James Nursey writes: Craig Bellamy insists he is not about to quit playing
for Wales but is adamant their dire display against Finland offers no hope
for the next decade.
Wales boss John Toshack demanded a big performance from his team to keep
their World Cup dreams alive. But the only home player who delivered at the
Millennium Stadium was keeper Wayne Hennessey, who did well to keep the score
down.
Defeat leaves Wales, who have not qualified for a major tournament since
1958, with no chance of reaching South Africa from Group Four. And the limp
show is certainly not about to encourage more fans to back the team following
appeals for better attendances.
Of the 22,604 who turned up on Saturday, most had long gone by the final
whistle and those who remained booed the hosts off.
Despondent Bellamy, 29, then gave a frank interview to Sky moments after
stepping off the pitch when he sounded close to international retirement. But
the outspoken Wales captain insists he is not about to quit despite the
team's bleak prospects.
"There is no chance of me retiring - I have had plenty of lows and I have had
too many setbacks," said the Manchester City striker. "It's clear from today
that we are not good enough to qualify.
"Wales have never done anything and we are not going to do anything this
campaign. I will usually get the criticism, though - it is my fault as I
never picked the ball up from 70 yards out and ran past everyone. Maybe a
team in a generation from me, say 10 years from now, can learn from this. But
what is promise? It means nothing if you don't fulfil it."
Wales started well but never looked like equalising after former Charlton
striker Jonatan Johansson put Finland ahead late in the first half. The Finns
also had a good shout for a penalty before the break when Gareth Bale
appeared to foul Mikael Forssell. In the second half Hennessey denied
Forssell three times, while Joe Ledley and James Collins both made vital
clearances.
Finland's Crystal Palace forward Shefki Kuqi wrapped up their well-deserved
win with a slick low shot in injury time.
Wales were devoid of invention in attack and played too many high balls to
the diminutive Bellamy, who was up front on his own. He added: "The smallest
person in their defence is 6ft 1in so we played to their strengths and we
fell into a trap."
Wales' feeble reverse made a mockery of the FAW's decision in February to
hand boss Toshack a contract extension until the end of their 2012 qualifying
campaign. Toshack has an impressive management CV but his decision to play
only Bellamy in attack when the hosts needed a win backfired badly.
And his first substitution to swap Carl Fletcher for Carl Robinson, who is
another holding midfielder, was baffling. Tosh admitted everyone connected
with the team, including himself, had a bad day. "The players found it
difficult in the second half and, if I'm honest, I did as well," said
Toshack, whose side host Germany on Wednesday.
Toshack also admitted Wales's promising youngsters like Bale have not
blossomed as he hoped, denting further dreams of reaching Euro 2012. He
added: "We haven't been able to get there with the players we've had and this
result shows that this current crop isn't ready. Hopefully they will be in
the future but it probably won't be me here to see it. It hurts and it's
frustrating but that's the truth of it."
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