Wales boss Craig Bellamy on Türkiye, Iceland and the genius of the UEFA Nations League – interview

New Wales boss Craig Bellamy credits the UEFA Nations League format with enabling him to "hit the ground running" as manager, with competitive football honing his side for a promotion push – and even bigger challenges ahead.

Hired in July, the former Norwich, Newcastle, Liverpool and Man City forward has led his side unbeaten through the first four matchdays of the competition, and they are chasing promotion to League A as they face a double-header against section leaders Türkiye and third-ranked Iceland. The Nations League was designed to replace friendlies in the calendar, and allow teams meaningful competition against sides of a similar standard between European Qualifiers for the UEFA European Championship and FIFA World Cup, and on that front, the 45-year-old Bellamy says it has delivered.

On Wales' progress so far

I was prepared for all scenarios. Maybe a slow start – quite common. Maybe a disastrous start – could be quite common as well. But after the first few days, I was like: 'These [guys] are good and they are able to take on board what you are looking for.' I'm not changing the rules of football, far from it. It's just being able to give certain bits of messages and certain analysis to what we believe will benefit the group. And, the way they've been able to take it and go forward with it, it's really all the credit to them. To go four games unbeaten was something that I wasn't really looking at.

There will be tough moments. I'm waiting for those tough moments – they haven't quite come yet, but I know they are coming, it has to happen, because where I see the goal, where I see us ending – we have to have tough moments.

On the upcoming Nations League meeting with Türkiye

It's a really good game to play against a top nation like Türkiye, with a top manager. Being in Türkiye we're fully prepared for what the atmosphere's going to be like. My [mind] races to my own experiences of playing there as well; the first 15, 20 minutes are going to be tough. Don't expect any favours. Not going to happen. Don't expect any 50/50s [that] you're going to come out with the ball. It's not going to happen. Everyone's going to be up, so we're going to have to earn it the hard way.

But that's the excitement of it as well. I feel we'll see who we really are at times. It's going to be a really tough game, but I see it as a really exciting game. Türkiye: you go there and it's their hunger for football, their passion for football, that allows you to be excited.

On the potential promotion decider against Iceland

[Türkiye and Iceland are two] completely different oppositions, which is what's been great about this Nations League, I've really been so impressed with it. UEFA have done an incredible job. It's such a good format. With me being a manager, in my first period, it's really allowed me to hit the ground running, because it is competitive. We want to qualify for Group A. Türkiye, Iceland, Montenegro – all want to get into Group A. So, we're going as strong as we can, as hard as we can to all be able to do it. One's going to do it, now there's another format with the play-offs. So, let's hope we can be the one.

[Iceland's] counterattacking ability is really exceptional due to the profile of players they have. A country of 300 odd thousand people – they had that wave in the early 2000s where they built a lot of football pitches, they had a big boom of investment, not just the men's side, the women's side as well. And the success they've had through it, for a country of their size, they're an example to every country. The way they work, and how hard they work for each other – you'll never see Iceland really get turned over, they're always involved in a game.

On how he is taking to the job

I've loved it. It's brought out a different side of me. But it's also because I've spent so many years away from Wales, it has allowed me to find peace with myself. A lot of my happiest memories as a child [were of] living in Wales. We're always looking for our happiest memories. We'd all love to be that seven-, eight-year-old child again.

I believe in young kids getting the opportunity to play this great game, and I'm really positive that I can hopefully make a really big impact in that as well. That's really important to me, that I'm not just the manager of the first team, but I help grow the game: for girls, boys, you name it – anyone who's involved in football. There's a lot of stuff I don't need to do, but I will go and do, and I'm happy to go and do, because I see that as an opportunity [to be] able to give back to the greatest game in the world.