The Craig Bellamy appreciation thread

[the count]

Craig Bellamy's seeing a psychologist, dealing with the loss of his mentor and donating £1.2m to an African football school
By MICHAEL WALKER


The familiar side of Craig Bellamy should be on view for Liverpool away at Wolves on Tuesday night, the relentless forward who at 32 is arguably in the form of his life, the Bellamy who scored the goal against Manchester City last week that took Liverpool back to Wembley for the first time in 16 years.
At the same time as he and his teammates play at Molineux, another side of Bellamy will be aired on television.
On ITV4 is a documentary charting Bellamy's perception-challenging charity work in the West African country, Sierra Leone.

Over the past five years Bellamy has sunk £1.2m of his own cash into establishing a not-for-profit football academy in the Kono region and, along with Unicef, a national league in a country where the existing top-flight league has been suspended due to lack of funds.
'I don't do this for people to have a different opinion of me,' Bellamy says. 'That's not too important to me.'
But it will display an aspect of Bellamy's personality not always on view.
'The beauty of the country, it's just remarkable,' he says of Sierra Leone. 'What I found even more amazing than that was that everywhere I went everyone knew who I was. We're talking about African villages as you'd imagine it from hundreds of years ago - huts. Then a child walks past in a Steven Gerrard shirt.


'The kids weren't playing with footballs, they had rolled up socks or oranges, but their love for the game is what we had 20, 30 years ago. With computers, cars, very rarely do you see kids on the street here any more. Sierra Leone just brought that back and made me think: "I'd like to do something".
'That I've been able to help people in a worse situation gives me more satisfaction that anything football's been able to give me. Whether I go on to achieve something in football, or not, I can go back to see Sierra Leone and see what I've been able to help.'
Bellamy's involvement in Sierra Leone began in 2007 when he visited a friend from Cardiff working in construction. It started a change in Bellamy but that process has increased rapidly recently.
The death of Gary Speed was the accelerator, an event that still shocks Bellamy daily. He withdrew from the league game against Manchester City the day Speed died and at Anfield they saw at once that their player "needed help".

They arranged for Bellamy to see sports psychologist Steve Peters, a man who works with cyclists Chris Hoy and Bradley Wiggins among others. For Bellamy, the meeting was transformational, bringing him, he says, fresh and calm introspection.
Immediately the name of Nigel Reo-Coker is put to him as evidence of the opposite but Bellamy is adamant that the spat at Bolton ten days ago was 'comical', that Reo-Coker misunderstood.
“He (Gary) wasn’t just a team-mate, he was my idol in football and was everything I tried to become”
'Reo-Coker, he behaved like an idiot,' Bellamy says. 'I was only messing about. He was saying, "see you down the tunnel" and I was laughing because we go down separate tunnels there anyway. If you watch, I wasn't the aggressor. I was having fun. I wasn't letting it get to me.'
Though it was said dismissively, that 'idiot' comment reveals the new Bellamy to be a work in progress. He knows this. But he was not booked at Bolton. He has not been booked in his last nine games. He mentions that he 'didn't go mad' last Wednesday celebrating the winner against City, his former club. He says that while he had 'so many texts after the City game saying "you showed Mancini," he is not holding a grudge with Roberto Mancini.
Bellamy adds that he has invited former City chief executive Garry Cook to Wembley for the final, as well as the Welshman's knee surgeon. If this shows some of the complexities of relationships within fast-moving football, so does Bellamy when he talks about Speed.
He does so without using Speed's name, referring to 'him'. It is as if 'Gary' or 'Speedo' is too painful. He refers to Speed's death as 'that'. Explaining his altering perspectives, Bellamy says: 'Steve Peters wrote a book called The Chimp Paradox. Since "that" happened, I have been seeing Steve. He has made so much sense.

'Basically we are all chimps. The human side is at the front of our forehead but the chimp is the part that lashes out. But there is another part of the brain that is a computer. When I play, I am completely chimp-orientated. Why can't I watch myself play a day later? Because that's not me. I hate it. I hate watching how I confront the ref. There has always been this Jekyll and Hyde. I have had the chimp fighting me.
'But if you see the top athletes, they are not like that. You know why? Because their computer takes over.


'People say "if you take the anger out of Craig Bellamy, he wouldn't be half the player". It's bollocks. You know what, I'd be a better player. I would be actually thinking more rationally. You just have to go into computer mode where things just come naturally.
'I have had the opportunity to do the Steve Peters thing before but it was something I was more afraid of. I was doing all right.
'It's responsible for my form at the moment. It has had a huge impact. Did you see the celebration after I scored against City? I didn't go mad. I just wanted to work my socks off. And if I win, I win.
'I have been in a lot of semi-finals. But I have been injured in a lot of them. In the play-offs last year, I pulled my hamstring after 15 minutes of the first game . I believe it was because of the tension. I went into those games worrying about things I can't control. I went into those games thinking: "I can't lose, if I lose, I'm a failure". How can you go into a game and do well if you are putting that pressure on yourself? No wonder I pulled my hamstring.

'I got through these [City] semi-finals off the back of it. The simple fact is that I was prepared to lose.'
Bellamy is sitting in an apartment in Liverpool. The Beatles stare out from a cushion. His wife and three children are in Cardiff. There is plenty of space and time to think, about here and now and what comes next.
He has long felt obsessed by football but Peters appears to have convinced Bellamy that the obsession is actually just 'commitment', and that measuring a life in medals is unhealthy.
'Ten minutes into the first meeting it registered,' Bellamy says. 'This is not about me becoming a better footballer, I'm not interested in that. If it helps my football, then great. If it helps me after football, that's more important. If it helps me deal with not being able to fall back on football, to enjoy my life, my wife, my kids, stop stressing over things that I don't have...
“I can’t watch myself on TV. I hate it. I hate the way I confront a referee. The top athletes are not like that...”
'I've spent too much of my career believing that I'm only judged on what I win or the impact I've had crazy thought that I have to win something, otherwise my career's a complete failure. It's ridiculous. Will a trophy change me as a person? No. Will it make me a better player? No. So what the hell am I worried about?'
He adds: 'If I'd carried on the way I was going... I was just torturing myself day in, day out. What happens when I finish, thinking everything I've done in football is just a waste of time? 'No-one else is believing this. I am.'
Bellamy is at ease in Liverpool, though. He expresses his gratitude for the club's and fans' reaction to him after Speed died. He is in regular contact with the family and Speed's sons were at the last City match.
Next month Wales play Costa Rica in a memorial game for Speed. Bellamy will appear but he is unsure whether he will continue to play for his country after that.
Bellamy likes Speed's successor Chris Coleman but, while Bellamy had many confrontations with Speed's idiosyncratic assistant Raymond Verheijen, he values the 'brilliant but typically Dutch' coach. Coleman is not certain to retain Verheijen.
Then there is the Football Association of Wales: Bellamy is unimpressed with their lack of communication and agreed with captain Aaron Ramsey when he spoke out. It is intricate. And there is Speed.
'My biggest concern is being there and him not being there,' Bellamy says. 'That's going to be the hardest bit. Because this game's in his memory, I can concentrate on that. But after that I don't know. It could go one way or the other.
'I do think it's going to be difficult for me to play because of the impact of what happened. There are a lot of people I need to talk to. Wales has meant everything to me. It has been the highlight of my career. But the situation of what happened has had such an impact on me. I still haven't got over it now and I don't think I ever will.
'He wasn't just a team-mate. He was my idol in football. He was everything I tried to become. I spoke to him once a week for the last ten years. But I get to see his kids. I speak to his kids every couple of days which is good because they remind me so much of him.'
Wales-Costa Rica is on Wednesday, February 29. Three days earlier Liverpool play Cardiff City, Bellamy's hometown club and the team he was with last season. It is at Wembley, where Bellamy has never played. He is excited at the thought, the memory of old Wembley finals 'when everyone looked tired'. It all contributes to an intense period of spontaneous reflection.
'It's only in the past three to four months that I've thought this way,' he says. 'It's nice to have a dream, to look forward, but you can't let it take over everything. You have to remember what you have.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2093999/Craig-Bellamy-interview.html#ixzz1kzIDjTyI

 

[My_Blood_Bleeds_Red]

Oliver Holt meets the REAL Craig Bellamy
[img alt=Craig Bellamy interview]http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/incoming/article859493.ece/ALTERNATES/gallery-large/Craig+Bellamy+interview[/img] Craig Bellamy is sitting in his flat in Liverpool. The place is spotless and austere.
The television is on. Novak Djokovic is talking but the sound is turned down.
Bellamy is talking, too. The intensity is turned up.
He is speaking about something that broke his heart. Later, it turns out it was not the only thing.
Until a couple of months ago, the Liverpool forward says, he was so stressed about the fear of failure and the shame of losing that he could not remember the last time he had enjoyed playing a football match.
Then the tragedy of the death of his great friend and mentor, Gary Speed, made him reassess his life and a profound change swept over him.
“People say, ‘If you take the anger out of Craig Bellamy, he would only be half the player,” Bellamy says. “It’s b******s. I know that now.
"You know what, I’d be a better player. I would be actually thinking more rationally.”
Through much of the last five years, he has sought fulfilment in helping others but in the last eight weeks he has come to accept that he must also learn to help himself.
“The lads I played football with on the street when I was a kid in Cardiff were as good as me,” Bellamy says, “and in many ways my career is due to them.
“But I had my parents. I had the dedication of my father to take me from A to B. He tried to do it for others but it’s very difficult to be other people’s parents.
“It sort of broke my heart a little that those lads haven’t enjoyed what I’ve enjoyed.”
It took him a while but Bellamy found a way to banish that sadness. Five years ago, he flew to Sierra Leone to visit a friend working in Kono in the north of the country.
It transformed his life.
“I had always wanted to get involved in charity work in the UK but going to Sierra Leone made me think, ‘We’re okay’,” Bellamy says.
“These kids have nothing. They weren’t playing with footballs. They had rolled up socks or oranges, but their love for the game is what we had 20 or 30 years ago.
“Very rarely do you see kids playing football on the street here any more. Sierra Leone just brought that back and made me think ‘I’d like to do something here.’”
What Bellamy did is the subject of a documentary which will air on ITV4 on Tuesday evening, while he is trying to help Liverpool beat Wolves at Molineux.
What he did was pour more than £1.2m of his own money into a football academy for young players outside the capital, Freetown, that houses, provides for and trains 20 promising footballers and will have soon have room for 20 more.
Unicef increased the scope of his project.
Together with Bellamy, they established the Craig Bellamy League for youth teams across the country. They started a girls’ league and a team for amputees maimed in the civil war.
“That I’ve been able to help people in a worse situation gives me more satisfaction than anything football’s been able to give me,” Bellamy says.
“At 22, 23, would I have been able to do this? Of course not. I’m older and I’m financially secure, but that means little to me.
“I’m aware of my value as a player of course. But do I need to buy a holiday home that I’m only going to use two weeks every year? Course not. It’s a waste. Why not give the money to people who could do with it.
“It took a while to convince me to do the documentary. I don’t do this for people to have a different opinion of me. That’s not too important to me.
“I realised I had to do this for me to sustain income. Unicef are moving on to other projects and for me to give more children an opportunity I had to be realistic that this cannot keep coming from my pocket.
“I will keep funding the academy but we are going to rely on charitable donations for the youth league, the women’s league and the amputee team.
“I have put a lot of money into the project in Sierra Leone but every time I go over, I would spend again.
“I get thanks when I’m over there but, if I’m honest, I need to thank them more for what they’ve done for me as a person.”
Despite the satisfaction he gained from his work in Sierra Leone, Bellamy found it hard to draw fulfilment from playing professional football.
Then, on November 27 last year, the news broke that Speed, then the Wales manager, had committed suicide at his Cheshire home.
Bellamy missed that day’s game against Manchester City and the staff at Anfield, concerned that he was bottling things up, urged him to seek help from sports psychologist, Steve Peters, who also advises stars like Sir Chris Hoy.
Bellamy is still struggling to come to terms with Speed’s death, which he can only refer to as ‘what happened’.
In the two-hour conversation at his apartment, it was too painful for him even to mention Speed by name.
“He wasn’t just a former teammate,” Bellamy says. “He was my idol in football. He was everything I tried to become. I spoke to him once a week for the last 10 years.
“But I get to see his kids. I speak to his kids every couple of days which is good because they remind me so much of him.”
Peters, who has written a book called The Chimp Paradox about the struggle between the rational side of the brain and the rage that comes from our primitive origins, has helped him put his search for achievement in the game into context.
“I have realised a lot more stuff since what happened,” Bellamy says. “Every time I play a game, do I think about it? Of course I do. Do I think about it most nights? Of course I do.
“It is difficult but at the same time it has helped me discover a lot about myself. Steve Peters has made so much sense. Basically we are all chimps. The human side is at the front of our forehead but the chimp is the part that lashes out.
“When I play, I am completely chimp-orientated. Why can’t I watch myself play a day later? Because that’s not me. I hate it. I hate watching how I confront the ref. I don’t like that side of me.
“It goes with who I am. There has always been this Jekyll and Hyde. I have had the chimp fighting me.
“Do you know how many times I have wasted energy over thinking about a decision and preventing me doing something two seconds later because I was still thinking about what just happened?
“I have always been told, ‘That’s who you are and to play well, that’s what you’ve got to be like.’ But if you see the top athletes, they are not like that. Do you know why? Because the other part of their brain, the computer, takes over.
“I’ve always had this crazy thought that I have to win something, otherwise my career’s a complete failure. It’s ridiculous. Will a trophy change me as a person? No. Will it make me a better player? No. So what the hell am I worried about.”
Bellamy credits the work he has done with Peters for getting him through the two legs of the Carling Cup semi-final against Manchester City.
Bellamy scored the decisive goal in the second leg at Anfield last week and has been in some of the best form of his career.
“The support of the manager, the players and the fans at Liverpool and the stuff with Steve Peters is responsible for my form at the moment,” says Bellamy. “It has had a huge impact.
“I have been in a lot of semi-finals. But I have been injured in a lot of them. In the play-offs with Cardiff last year, I pulled my hamstring after 15 minutes of the first game. I believe it was because of the tension.
“I have been aware of opportunities to work with sports psychologists before but it was something I was afraid of. I was doing all right as it was. Don’t mess with it. Don’t rock the boat. It was probably due to what happened as well.
“What I’m doing with Steve Peters is not about me becoming a better footballer. I’m not interested in that. If it helps my football, then great. If it helps me after football, that’s more important.
“If it helps me deal with not being able to fall back on football, to enjoy my life, my wife, my kids, stop stressing over things that I don’t have...
“If I’d carried on the way I was going... I was just torturing myself day in, day out. What happens when I finish, thinking everything is just a waste of time, everything I’ve done in football? No-one else is believing this but I am.
“I’ve always listened to people talking about winning - win this, win that - but I’ve done more than I could have dreamed of in my career. I’ve already won.
“The two things I ask my kids after they have played a game are, ‘Did you enjoy it’ and ‘did you do your best’ but I wasn’t asking myself the same questions.
“It’s just that we get taught, ‘You must win this, you must do that’. It’s rubbish.
"Be thankful for what you’ve done. Keep trying hard. Don’t let it ruin your life. I’ve done that for too long.”
***
CRAIG BELLAMY is agonising about whether to retire from international football after the tribute match to Gary Speed between Wales and Costa Rica next month.
Speed died last November after leading a resurgence in the Wales national team and he has been succeeded as manager by Chris Coleman.
“I don’t know whether I’ll play on for Wales,” Bellamy said. “I do think it’s going to be difficult for me to play because of the impact of what happened.
“I am committed to the Costa Rica game and then it might be my last. I’m not too sure. It might be but it might not. There are a lot of people I need to talk to.
“Wales has meant everything to me. It has been the highlight of my career. I believed in him that much as a manager and I believed in him that much as a person, I actually thought we were going to qualify for the World Cup.
“I wanted him to have that satisfaction as well because I saw how hard he tried for Wales and how hard he played. To try to qualify and him not be there, I don’t know.”
***
CRAIG BELLAMY insists he was just ‘having fun’ with Bolton midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker following the players’ bitter war of words at the Reebok Stadium ten days ago.
Reo-Coker and Bellamy clashed angrily on the pitch during Liverpool’s defeat and Reo-Coker said after the match that he had no respect for the Liverpool forward.
“Reo-Coker behaved like an idiot,” Bellamy said. “I was only messing about. It was just comical. I was actually laughing about it with Zat Knight because Reo-Coker had gone.
“He was saying, ‘See you down the tunnel’ and I was laughing because we go down separate tunnels there anyway.”
Bellamy said he spoke to sports psychologist Steve Peters about the incident and confessed he had been involved in an argument.
Peters asked him if he had lost control. Bellamy said he hadn’t.
“If you watch, I wasn’t the aggressor,” he said. “I was having fun. I wasn’t letting it get to me.”

I didn't know who the real Craig Bellamy before this. I probably still don't but after reading this ...my respect for him has gone up a BIG notch.

Little guy, but HUGE, HUGE heart.

“I’m aware of my value as a player of course. But do I need to buy a holiday home that I’m only going to use two weeks every year? Course not. It’s a waste. Why not give the money to people who could do with it."

Love him to bits.

 

[Judge Jules]

The man's heart is in absolutely the right place and, fortunately for us, so are his shooting boots. It'll take a lot for anyone to dislodge Bellers from my nomination for Player of the Season.

 

[HC]

I love the passion he has and shows for the club.

Hes got a documentary abouy his charity work on itv4. Clashes with the game but might be worth recording

 

[doctor_mac]

Great read that. Good on Bellers.

 

[King Binny]

Craig Bellamy in Sierra Leone

 

[themn]

Top man.

 

[nealmac]

Fair play, Bellers.

 

[737Max]

Anyone watching itv4? It's the documentary about Craig Bellamy's football academy in Sierra Leone.

Moving stuff and only goes to show what a legend he really is!

 

[localny]

Just saw the highlights, the man was at the center of every highlight, really dominating the proceedings - was this the case?

Dalglish said: “Craig was fantastic. The wee man certainly has been fantastic for us. I wish his numbers were the other way around.

“Instead of being 32, I wish he was 23. He doesn’t do anything that surprises you. He prepares himself well for matches.

“He does things for himself within the framework of the team. You expect something to happen.”

 

[Vlads Quiff]

well he was fucking five years younger when we first got our hands on him........

regards

 

[King Binny]

|| Craig Bellamy , The UNSTOPPABLE || LFC #39

 

[King Binny]

ROBBIE SAVAGE feels Craig Bellamy will make an ideal Great Britain captain at the Olympics.

Liverpool striker Bellamy, 32, is on Stuart Pearce’s 80-man list for this summer. And former Wales midfielder Savage says his countryman and former team-mate has the qualities to lead the combined side as one of the three over-23 picks.

Savage said: “Craig is a fantastic player and captain. There is no question he can motivate youngsters. I’ve seen him do that as captain of Wales.

“He’s got the respect, desire and is a caring footballer on the field. He would be a fantastic choice. People get Craig Bellamy wrong. He leads people on the field. He’d be a decent shout.”

 

[localny]

80 man list' yer whaa?

 

[RedZeppelin III]

yeah i think i'm on that list also . well it's the only explanation i have for Stuart Pearce hanging around outside my gaf in a long rain coat .

 

[King Binny]

Firebrand Liverpool and Wales striker Craig Bellamy has defied expectations in setting up a league in Sierra Leone, looking to inspire and educate young people out of poverty. Alex Lawson caught up with the Craig Bellamy Foundation (CBF) to find out how one of football’s most recognisable figures is becoming indispensable to a small part of Africa.

Comparisons between the streets of 1980s Cardiff and modern day Sierra Leone are few and far between however the similarities Welsh star Craig Bellamy saw on a trip to visit a friend in 2007 sparked one of the most unlikely tales in football.

Visiting a friend working in the country, Bellamy was moved by the country’s passion for football and the poverty he witnessed. Across Sierra Leone, he saw children with nothing on their feet using footballs made out of rolled up socks or oranges, triggering memories of playing football on the street in Cardiff as a child in the process. He acted swiftly and set up the foundation to offer opportunities for children to help themselves and their communities by tapping into their love of football. The foundation now runs Sierra Leone’s only professional football academy and a national youth league, both focused on improving education standards.

Cynical football fans have accused Bellamy of using positive PR to mask his previous misdemeanours when he has faced multiple allegations of violent conduct including that alleged drunken incident involved teammate John Arne Riise and a golf club.

“There was no blaze of publicity to announce the launch of the Craig Bellamy Foundation back in 2008,” insists CBF chief executive Tim Kellow. “Craig is a very private person and he didn’t set up the Foundation to make a point to people.”

Kellow’s point is evidenced by a moving documentary, Craig Bellamy’s African Dream, broadcast by ITV in January after following the striker on a trip to catch up with the foundation. “It took a long time and a lot of persuasion to get him to talk about it at all. Finally, during his last visit in June 2011 Craig was accompanied by an ITV film crew and spoke publicly about his work in Sierra Leone for the first time,” Kellow says. “In the end, I think he realised that for the foundation to continue to offer the same and even more opportunities to children, the documentary would help generate support from others. Craig is committed to this project for the long haul, but he is also a realistic person who wants the positive impacts to continue long after his career has ended.”

Sierra Leone is an ever-changing country. Blighted by civil war between 1991 and 2002 leaving 50,000 people dead, the country is still repairing much of its infrastructure and counts much of its population elsewhere after two million people were displaced, largely to neighbouring Guinea. Despite a natural wealth due to its diamond mines, 70% of its population live in poverty and survive without access to basics amenities.

Bellamy himself explains: “I was amazed by the warmth of the people and their thirst for football. You would see a Gerrard or Lampard shirt wherever you go.

To use football as the incentive to get them to go to school, I knew was going to work. To get them back to school and also enjoy football for what it is. We are going to give the opportunity to some kids to go to school, train and eat [at our academy].

“To see a number of people sleeping on the floor of a small room, to have one meal a day was a real struggle for them, it was very hard to take as soon as you go over you won’t see any grass pitches, it’s gravel apart front the national football stadium but if you see these young kids play it doesn’t put them off one inch.”

The foundation itself is moving from strength to strength. It hosts Sierra Leone’s only professional football academy and national youth league which run schools alongside their sport, some 2,000 young people partipcate and if they don’t attend school they can’t play. Bellamy himself has stepped in to help coach and also teach discipline to those not used to regularly attending school. Kellow who has a decade of international development experience to his name, heads up the day-today work of the charity alongside academy manager Johnny McKinstry, whose coaching CV includes stints at Newcastle United and the New York Red Bulls.

Now in its third season, the foundation has worked with Unicef and has also enjoyed the support of Mohamed Kallon – the nations other famous export – and the British Army based in Sierra Leone. The charity has worked hard to promote women’s rights and has improved female school attendance significantly. Moreover, it recently launched a women’s league on International Women’s Day.

The foundation has strong long-term ambitions. The target is to become the leading charity using football to achieve social development goals in Africa while catering for 70 live-in young people. Moreover, it aims to place its graduates in academic institutions and clubs in the UK, US and Europe. The league is being expanded to involve more regions and age groups and, in the long-term, the aim is to develop it into a self-sustaining and locally-run league for boys and girls from 11-18 years old.

Recognition for the foundations ground-breaking work in Sierra Leone is starting to come in with the foundation’s Youth Development League being shortlisted for the Beyond Sport ‘Sport for Development’ award this week.

Kellow concludes: “Sport is widely recognised as a positive force for social change. We use football to tackle key social development priorities. We harness children’s love of the game to encourage education, improve health and reduce poverty.”

Bellamy himself may struggle to convince his naive doubters of his character but while his funds and support continue to make such a difference, there’s little reason he should care.

 

[King Binny]

Wales manager Chris Coleman has named Craig Bellamy in a 23-man squad to play Mexico in New York on 27 May.

Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey will miss out with a torn cruciate ligament, but Liverpool striker Bellamy - whose continued participation with Wales had been in question - will make the trip.

Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey, who could feature in the GB Olympic team, are also selected.

Bellamy is also in a provisional 80-man squad for the London Games.

Coleman hopes the 32-year-old will prolong his international career to play in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, which begin in September.

Missing out on selection are Rob Earnshaw, Danny Gabbidon and James Collins.

The only new face in the squad is Chelsea goalkeeper Rhys Taylor.

Wales' friendly with Mexico at MetLife Stadium is effectively Coleman's first proper game in charge.

He was appointed before the 1-0 defeat by Costa Rica in February, a match to honour former manager Gary Speed.

Coleman decided to take a back seat for that match, with assistant Osian Roberts in charge, as Wales paid its respects to Speed on an emotional night in Cardiff.

Wales squad: (from) Jason Brown (Aberdeen), Lewis Price (Crystal Palace), Rhys Taylor (Chelsea), Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest), Neil Taylor (Swansea City), Sam Ricketts (Bolton Wanderers), Ashley Williams (Swansea City), Adam Matthews (Celtic), Neal Eardley (Blackpool), Darcy Blake (Cardiff City), Joe Allen (Swansea City), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Andrew Crofts (Norwich City), David Vaughan (Sunderland), Joe Ledley (Celtic), Andy King (Leicester City), David Edwards (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur), Craig Bellamy (Liverpool), Hal Robson-Kanu (Reading), Steve Morison (Norwich City), Simon Church (Reading), Sam Vokes (Wolverhampton Wanderers).

Stand-by players: Owain Fon Williams (Tranmere Rovers), Adam Henley (Blackburn Rovers), Rhoys Wiggins (Charlton Athletic), Billy Bodin (Swindon Town), David Cotterill (Barnsley - released), Jermaine Easter (Crystal Palace).

 

[King Binny]

Warrior has made its next move, revealing Liverpool and Welsh international striker Craig Bellamy has been signed as the brand's first football ambassador.

In a unique deal that will see the sponsorship fee go directly to the Craig Bellamy Foundation in Sierra Leone, Warrior will work closely with Bellamy to raise global awareness of the Foundation and build on his work to date. The Liverpool front man will also work alongside Warrior to develop its debut football boot collection.

Founded by Bellamy himself in 2008, the Craig Bellamy Foundation provides under-privileged children a chance to reach their full potential through a mix of sport and education, enabling them to create better lives for themselves and their communities. Operated on a not-for-profit basis, the Craig Bellamy Foundation is also the driving force behind Sierra Leone's only professional football academy and a popular youth league.

In addition to helping fund the Foundation's educational and recreational facilities, Warrior will provide practical support by supplying footballs, boots and kit.

Bellamy is thrilled the new partnership with Warrior will strengthen his efforts in Sierra Leone.

"While Warrior works to support me on the field, we'll work together to support the Craig Bellamy Foundation off it," he said. "For me, the most important part of this deal is that the money and extra resource provided by Warrior will go directly to the children and local communities involved with my charity in Sierra Leone."

Head of Warrior Football Richard Wright commented: "At Warrior, we align ourselves with athletes who are highly driven, motivated and possess a winning mentality - Craig is one of these athletes. His work in Sierra Leone is remarkable and we are delighted to help these young footballers of tomorrow."

With 149 career goals to his name, Bellamy will provide his personal insight and experience as Warrior develops its first football boot collection.

"Craig will play an integral role in the boot design and development process, helping the Warrior team create a revolutionary product that will stand out from the pack," said Wright.

Set to be released in December 2012, more details about the new Warrior football boot will be revealed in the build-up to the start of the 2012/2013 English Premier League season.

Expect to hear more brand ambassador news from Warrior over the coming months. History begins here.

 

[gkmacca]

There's one tiny bit of the old LFC spirit kept alive by Craig.

 

[King Binny]

View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5renXdG8w08

 

[gkmacca]

As Keggy Keegan would say, he's like a pop-up toaster. Warrior sound like a good business, and well done to Craig for linking up for the Foundation. A different class as a man.

 

[rurikbird]

Wow, Bellamy, what a pleasant surprise. Looks like he has matured a lot after being a bit of a nutcase when younger.

 

[RolandG]

He got dodgy knees but his hear is in the right place. Wish he was 5 years younger.

 

[gkmacca]

Now he's got that chimp that pops in and out he ought to get his foundation linking up with PG Tips - he'd be great in that advert.

 

[SummerOnions]

What a man, let's hope he gets his chances this season.

 

[King Binny]

View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrBLNUAOBCg



View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMnVt3r_6mE

Mentioned in the 2nd video that he's in the Olympic squad. (around 1:40)

 

[gkmacca]

He's great on Enrique - and what he said about Enrique ignoring his gym instructions and concentrating instead on exercises to make his body look good comes as no great surprise!