Craig Bellamy is “really hurting” right now after watching his Wales squad get absolutely outclassed by Denmark, falling 2-0 at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen. Denmark was undeniably worthy winners, delivering a tough reality check for Wales in their Nations League A campaign. Man, this was another rough one, making it six matches without a win for Bellamy’s crew in 2026, and they’ve grabbed zero points from their brutal away double-header against Portugal and now the Danes. This is not how you want to kick off anything, let alone this level of competition.
Wales Undone By Set-Pieces and Danish Dominance
Denmark came out firing, showing their intent from the jump. Mikkel Damsgaard even clanked one off the post shortly after Gustav Isaksen had a goal chalked off for offside because, well, offside rules. But they kept pushing, relentless, and the breakthrough finally came with a Ben Davies own goal. Just brutal luck, right? Then Isaksen got his proper strike for Brian Riemer’s side to seal the deal. Coach Bellamy straight up admitted he told his players beforehand, “this is going to be tougher than Portugal.” Talk about a premonition coming true in the worst way. While Wales did show some improvement after that initial half an hour, they were ultimately done in by two crucial set-pieces. Davies, the team captain, was blunt about it, saying it was “really frustrating to concede from two set-pieces.” He knows the drill: “Nations League games are against the best teams in Europe, it was always going to be tough.” He added that if you’re “not at 100% then you are going to get punished at this level.” He’s not wrong. Bellamy himself conceded, “the best team won overall. As disappointed as I am with that, the result I probably think was fair.” Ouch.
Bellamy and Players Still Believe, Despite the Brutal Losses
Even after getting beaten down, Bellamy’s got a flicker of hope. He’s holding onto this idea that his side will get better by consistently playing against Europe’s absolute best. “When you see an athletic team run over you a little bit… but then, will we improve? I think we will,” he said. He truly believes this team will get better, that these players will keep improving, and that there are young ones coming up even after he’s gone. It’s tough love, apparently, as he quipped, “I’m probably more loving when I’m losing, I’m probably more of a pain in the backside when I’m winning.” Winger Sorba Thomas echoed that sentiment, emphasizing their “small nation but we’ve got big hearts and beliefs” and that they just need to show that fire more on the pitch. This loss to Denmark came just three days after a 1-0 defeat to Portugal in Lisbon. Two losses, zero points, plenty of work ahead, no doubt.
But here’s the silver lining for Wales, if you can call it that: They get to regroup and try again on home turf. They’ve got two more matches coming up at Cardiff City Stadium during this international break: Norway on Thursday, October 1, and then, get this, a chance for sweet revenge against Denmark the following Sunday. Thomas put it simply, “Thankfully we’ve got two games at home still to come. We’ll have home advantage so we need to show a reaction.” It’s on them, big time, to show that heart and belief, especially when the heat comes. Can they turn it around in front of their own fans? Fingers crossed, because they need it.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by BBC Sport.
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