Millwall and QPR's Championship rivals suffer coaching blow as appointment confirmed

Millwall and QPR’s Championship rivals have lost a key member of their coaching staff following the confirmation of a new international boss. Burnley lost their manager earlier this summer when Vincent Kompany departed on the back of relegation from the Premier League to join German giants Bayern Munich.

It was reported that the Belgian wanted to take right-hand man Craig Bellamy with him to Bavaria, but the Welshman stayed put, sensing a better opportunity. That opportunity may have been the manager role at Burnley, but the Clarets decided to go with former AFC Bournemouth and Fulham boss Scott Parker, and after Robert Page was sacked as Wales boss following disappointing Euro 2024 qualifying and Nations League campaigns, the writing seemed to be on the wall.

Bellamy, who has previously been linked with the Wales role, has now been appointed as the new Dragons manager, landing his first senior management role. Having begun his coaching career in Cardiff City’s youth setup - a spell that ended controversially - he continued his coaching education with Anderlecht under-21s before joining Burnley with Kompany.

The former Manchester City and Newcastle United star was given plenty of credit for his work alongside Kompany, forming a vital part of the coaching staff that guided the Clarets to promotion, while he has also been name-checked by Burnley players for doing a good job of kicking off pre-season in the absence of a new manager this summer, with Parker not being appointed until earlier this week,

Bellamy now takes over a Wales side that failed to qualify for Euro 2024 after losing on penalties to Poland in their play-off final. The Dragons don’t yet know who they will face in their World Cup qualifiers next year, but they will face Turkiye, Montenegro and Iceland in their Nations League group having suffered relegation to League B, much like England.

Confirming Bellamy’s arrival, an FAW statement read: “The Football Association of Wales (FAW) are delighted to announce the appointment of Craig Bellamy as the Cymru Men’s National Team Head Coach until 2028. A UEFA Pro Licence holder through the FAW Coach Education system, Bellamy has been a coach since retiring from playing in 2014, most recently as acting Head Coach and Assistant Coach at

“Burnley in the English Premier League. Prior to joining Burnley, Bellamy was the U21 Head Coach and Senior Team Assistant Coach for Anderlecht and also worked in the academy of his boyhood club Cardiff City. As a player, Bellamy played more than 400 top flight matches and represented Cymru 78 times, captaining the side between 2007-2010.”

Bellamy said: “It’s an incredible honour for me to be given the opportunity to lead my country and it’s the proudest moment of my career. It was always my ultimate dream to become the Cymru Head Coach and I am ready for the challenge. I will give my full commitment to develop this team and I am passionate to bring continued success into Welsh football. I can’t wait to get started with our Nations League games in September.”

The FAW’s Chief Football Officer, Dr. David Adams, added: “I am absolutely delighted to announce Craig as our new Head Coach. We undertook a thorough recruitment process for the new Men’s National Team Head Coach and Craig was identified as the standout candidate. We are all looking forward to the Nations League games and working with Craig to deliver success for Welsh Football.”