Bellamy starts Wales team with draw against Turkey despite Yilmaz red | Nations League

A day after Craig Bellamy apologised to a Turkish translator for being bored to the end of an answer, his passion for the Wales job spilled over onto the pitch. Bellamy was understandably as nervous as the first day of school and, given the enthusiasm his team exuded, his excitement was not surprising. Officially, this was their opening Nations League match against a team four places above them in the rankings, but simply put, it was Bellamy’s first test as a coach.

There was a hint of the old Bellamy still in his air – fourth official Sigurd Kringstad was never far from a nasty remark – but he will have been pleased with this performance. On the face of it, this was a resounding, if not perfect, performance against a Turkish side that played with 10 men for over 35 minutes after Baris Alper Yilmaz was sent off.

Bellamy has made waves since taking charge in July and his team have laid out their methods convincingly. By half-time, Wales had twice as many passes as Turkey, almost twice as many touches, five shots on goal to one of the visitors and just under 70% possession. Wales left Euro 2024 quarter-finalists Turkey with dummies for much of the first half as if it were an extension of training. Given these facts, it was hard to believe that Bellamy’s first training session with his players took place on Monday, after which Bellamy and his team held meetings to hammer through the plan that was more than clear here.

Bellamy, in pristine white trainers and a black bomber jacket, was eager to get back into familiar surroundings. This game, he said, was the beginning of a new story for him and his country. His last game as a player was here 10 years ago, for his boyhood club Cardiff City against Chelsea, for whom Mohamed Salah starred and Fernando Torres scored the winning goal. The star striker was the one obvious missing piece of the puzzle for Bellamy, whose team attacked with five players up front: captain Aaron Ramsey, Jordan James and Harry Wilson in the centre, flanked by Brennan Johnson and Sorba Thomas, a surprise signing. Thomas, who joined Nantes last month, had his work cut out for him in his first appearance since March last year and first start since June 2022. Thomas shot wide seconds into the second half.

Thomas had a lob ruled out for offside in the first half but otherwise Ramsey had Wales’ best chances. After a nifty move that began with Johnson backheeling the ball to Connor Roberts, Ramsey’s attempted header from the ensuing cross bounced off his left shoulder and over the bar. Ramsey then came close to converting Thomas’s low corner at the front post, with Ethan Ampadu firing against a post. Wales looked to be enjoying themselves and so did the fans. Bellamy looked happy ever since Ben Davies, playing at left centre-back, played a sharp diagonal pass into space for Johnson to gallop into. Bellamy gave Davies a hearty thumbs up.

Wales did not let up but Yilmaz had Turkey’s first real chance, sending a weak header onto the roof of Danny Ward’s net. There were a few nerve-wracking moments for Ward, who is now more of a reserve goalkeeper at Leicester. Bellamy admitted it would be madness to expect everything to work out on his first night, but there were plenty of sharp attacks. Ramsey set Wilson free with a quick one-on-one pass near the halfway line, but Johnson couldn’t position his feet quickly enough and shot just wide. A minute later, Wilson’s curved left-footed shot went inches wide of Mert Gunok’s goal, almost knocking Bellamy off his feet.

The Red Wall’s first ode to Bellamy was soon heard as they chanted the name of their beloved former player and now manager, who had succeeded his former team-mate Rob Page. On the surface, Wales’ task then became much easier as Yilmaz was sent off for a second yellow card following a late tackle on Neco Williams. Yilmaz’s first booking came in the first half after looking for a foul on Joe Rodon. The substitutions were offensive, with experienced Sheffield United striker Kieffer Moore and Liverpool teenager Lewis Koumas coming on for Ramsey and Thomas.

Within minutes of coming on, Moore was caught up in the fray, and a harmless collision ended with Caglar Soyuncu’s studs hitting him in the face. Moore returned to the field with a plaster on his head to the cheers of the locals. Turkey could have secured victory through Abdulkerim Bardakci just before the end, but his header from a corner went straight at Ward. There were eight minutes of added time in which Johnson missed and Ampadu attempted an overhead kick, but Wales had to settle for a point on an entertaining night.