Bellamy Retires

I see Bellers has retired.
Not everyone's cup of tea but whilst he wore our colours he gave opposition defences a torrid time.

Who can remember this game??

[video=youtube;v0wf-DR_A6U]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0wf-DR_A6U[/video]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/craig-bellamy-retires-after-17-3590190?

May 22, 2014 18:30 By Mirror Football

Craig Bellamy has retired from football at age 34, accepting his injury-plagued body "couldn't take it any more".

Bellamy's decision brings to an end a 17-year senior career, which concluded with a spell at his home-town club Cardiff.

He joined the Bluebirds on loan and then permanently, not only living a lifelong dream by playing for them but helping City into the top flight for the first time since the mid-1960s.

Even though he was unable to stop them going straight back down again, he retires with satisfaction.

In an interview given to Wales Online, he said: "It's been on my mind to finish playing for the last couple of years, but this time I've had to make a decision. I've had to listen to my body.

"I guess over the years I've become accustomed to the pain from various injuries, but for the last three to four years I've been on anti-inflammatories every day.

"I'm not sure my body will think that's a wise thing in due course, but it kept me playing for that period. However, the time has come to stand aside and say enough. My body can't take any more.

"When Cardiff got promoted, it was the sense of achievement with my home-town club that meant most to me, rather than being able to play another season in the Premier League. I had performed at that level for 12 years anyway, the goal of getting Cardiff up there meant more to me than actually playing there again myself.

"But I spoke to Malky Mackay (the manager at the time) and he talked me around for one last challenge. I wasn't sure I could offer too much."

Bellamy says there have been offers from both England and America, but is now planning on pursuing a coaching career.

The 78-cap Wales international, who started out with Norwich in 1997, added: "I do have lots of business activities to keep me busy and I'm taking my full coaching badges. I've got A, B and C, I just need to do the Pro-Licence which will prepare me properly for management."

Craig Bellamy of Wales during the Wales v Norway International Friendly match at the Cardiff City Stadium on November 12, 2011 in Cardiff, Wales


Bellamy has not always been regarded as the friendliest of characters during a career that also took in Coventry, Newcastle, Celtic, Blackburn, West Ham, Manchester City and two spells with Liverpool, but he claims the man the fans saw at the end of his time was a truer reflection of his personality.

"I've been an angry young man at times. So much of my career was affected by injuries. Not just the well-documented surgery, but the hamstring pulls and other things. Injuries hit me hard and they always seemed to come at key times. Back then I didn't understand my body as well as I began to do towards the end of my career," he said.

"But I think that anger I've displayed has been channelled into making me a better player. It gave me determination to get through those many injury problems.

"I was always far more at ease with myself as a player during the last couple of years with Cardiff.

"If truth be known, I got little enjoyment for large parts of my career. In hindsight, I needed to reflect more, be proud of what I did. Instead, I set myself unrealistic targets at times.

"But in the last couple of years I've been more proud, able to step back, enjoy my accomplishments. Why? Because my mind was in a good place."

Bellamy retires with 169 career goals, a League Cup and Community Shield won at Liverpool and a Scottish Cup from his time at Celtic.

 

Was a great player to watch, and a really important part of a fantastic side. I remember that more than the hotheaded mouthy parts

 

I remember him getting into a position to receive the ball from Dyer when Dyer ran into difficulty but wouldn't pass it to Bellamy and Bellamy would have killed him if he hadn't been pulled away by one of the Villa players.

 

Complete dick but one hell of a football er such a shame we did not hold on to him for longer but that was mainly down to him being a dick

 

Still more of a team player than Dyer though.

 

Agree there.

 

Bowyer agrees.

 

I liked him,always gave 100%.

 

I blame that prick Souness for Bellamy leaving. It was good to see he got applauded when taking corners for Cardiff.
He always gave 100% on the pitch, and thats what counts. Unlike some of the present squad.

 

Souness was to blame for quite a few things, we haven't had much luck with our managers.

 

We've never replaced that raw pace Bellamy had. Great player us. How Souness ever thought he was a wide right player I'll never understand.

 

Was excellent for us while here. Not great as a goalscorer but the perfect balance for Shearer's ageing legs. Souness obviously gets a lot of stick for his departure, but lets face it, the little ****er is a prick of the highest order. Our problem was we never replaced him. I don't wish him well because I don't like the prick and I don't like the way he behaved while here, and the way he spoke about the fans after he left. He's a prize twat end of for me. At least Dyer had the decency to hold his hands up in an interview a few years back and says he regrets the way he behaved while here. He spoke of the like sof him, Bellamy, Bramble, Jenas acting like spoilt brats and being partly responsible for Robson's departure. It doesn't make it alright but at least he was man enough to admit he'd been a bit of a prick.

I hope someone wraps a golf club around Bellends head

Feyenoord was ridiculously good though.

 

And that's why Souness was a terrible manager. If you can't handle a certain type of person, and then decide because you're too inept to handle them you should ship them off, you better get results with what's left.

He got rid of Robert too. What an idiot.

 

While Souness was undoubtedly ****e, Robert was just about finished when he left. You only need look at his time after Newcastle. I lost a bit of respect for Robert the way he behaved under Souness. I hated Souness time here but I couldn't argue when he kept hauling off Robert which led to his outburst in the press. He had been ****ing awful (probably just decline). I don't like players who don't man up and go spouting in the press, its a bit underhand, unprofessional and pathetic. Bellers was going sooner or later. He had spats with Robson and Carver too. Sooner or later he was going whoever the manager, it is the same everywhere he went except Cardiff. Just one of those characters.

Even the best managers get rid once disrespected, players decline or otherwise. Look at Ferguson. Great manager but get the wrong side of him and you were gone. Shows signs of decline, you were gone. Nobody ever talks about his lack of man management skills, quite the opposite. Souness's problem wasn't getting shot of Bellamy or Robert (he was probably right in a lot of ways), it was he didn't have a clue how to build a team when he was at Newcastle. Boumsong, Luque, Owen. Enough said really. If he had replaced the likes of Bellamy and Robert with quality, it would have been a good start. However thinking Shola was good and being tactically inept was a different matter.

 

Bellamy was/is a twat, but he had some great performances for us and I was sorry to see him go. As well as the obvious Feyenoord game, I remember him destroying Everton at Goodison Park in a game where they played us off the park for most of the game and we won 3-1. Their defence shat themselves everytime he got the ball. One of the best individual performances I have ever seen live.

 

Not even going to mention Pardew's inability to build a team.

 

Worlds away in terms of job done though AB. Souness never got us anywhere near the dizzy heights of 5th or going like we were early this season. And he can't use the excuse of not having funds. On those 3 players alone we blew 35m!!!! Probably the biggest disaster in our history in terms of money. I think his net spend was circa 30m for his time here (2 years)!

Even the likes of Gullit had only about an 8m net spend in is 12 months (I think), Fat Sam about 11m in his 18months (though wages were out of control), Dalglish about 5m in his 18 months (and he was ordered to slash KK's wild wage bill).

To put that into context Sir Bobby had a net spend of about 32m in his reign (5 years) and KK had a net spend of about 40m for his 5 years.

Actually if you took Robson, KK and Souness out of it, we've been pretty low in terms of net spends. Problem is that with the exception of KK, Robson and possibly Dalglish, we've had muppets spending what money we have had, big or small. Indeed Pardew looks pretty good compared to many of them, though he doesn't control transfer the way the rest did. he is the only manager who has made a profit.

In defence of Souness, its rumoured he never wanted Owen and FS pushed him onto him. So that 17m was maybe not his fault.

 

That was the day that inspired me to join 606. I was effing livid with Souness!

Bellamy was a mouthy little get, but what a player.!

 

So we've got Souness to blame for you being in our midst.

 

You rotten sod.