Wales recall Bale, Bellamy and Ramsey for England qualifier

Posted Saturday, March 19, 2011 by theguardian.com

• Gary Speed hopeful of an upset
• Captain will be named next week

Wales recall Bale, Bellamy and Ramsey for England qualifier
Craig Bellamy has been called up for Wales' match against England in Cardiff on Saturday.

Gary Speed has named Gareth Bale, Craig Bellamy and Aaron Ramsey in his squad for next Saturday's Euro 2012 qualifier against England at the Millennium Stadium, where he hopes Wales can take inspiration from Northern Ireland's surprise victory over the same opponents six years ago and cause an upset of their own.

The Wales manager, who will be overseeing his first competitive match in charge since he was appointed as John Toshack's successor in December, will watch Bale play for Tottenham Hotspur against West Ham United today with a view to starting him against England next week. With Bellamy and Ramsey also available provided they come through this weekend's matches without injury, Speed should be able to call upon Wales's three most talented individuals to face Fabio Capello's side.

"We've got a chance, there's no doubt about that," said Speed, who revealed that Ryan Giggs plans to "pop in" to the team hotel next week to give the players a timely boost. "The form book, the bookies – everyone would have England down for a win and rightly so. But Northern Ireland beat them [at Windsor Park] so it's doable. If we are as good as we can be and England have an off day, we've got a chance of winning."

Although Speed feels "a little bit too much" has been made of how Fabio Capello has handled England's captaincy, the response the Wales manager gave to a question about which player will lead out his own team in Cardiff revealed he has dealt with things far better. "I have decided. But I can't tell you who it is because the players don't know yet," he said. "It would be unprofessional of me to tell you before telling anybody else. When we get together next week they'll know."

Bellamy is not under consideration for the role after telling Speed that he felt someone else should be captain because of the injury problems that restrict his involvement in friendlies. That leaves Aston Villa's James Collins, who should be fit for the England match despite carrying a calf injury, and Swansea City's Ashley Williams as the frontrunners, although when Speed spoke of a "long-term" appointment it was tempting to wonder whether he might turn to Bale or Ramsey.

Speed described Bale, Ramsey and Bellamy as "matchwinners [who] can be the difference between a draw and a win" although he is acutely aware that England have plenty of players who fall into the same category. "I've noticed things we can exploit but they've got quality throughout the team," he said. "[Wayne] Rooney is coming back into form – he's obviously a threat. And I watched Darren Bent and Ashley Young the other day and they were very good."

Wales squad to face England

Hennessey (Wolves), Myhill (West Brom), Price (Crystal Palace), D Collins (Stoke), J Collins (Aston Villa), Eardley (Blackpool), Gabbidon (West Ham), Gunter (Nottingham Forest), Nyatanga (Bristol City), Taylor (Swansea), Williams (Swansea), Allen (Swansea), Bale (Tottenham), Crofts (Norwich), King (Leicester), Ledley (Celtic), Ramsey (Arsenal), Vaughan (Blackpool), Bellamy (Cardiff), Church (Reading), Earnshaw (Nottingham Forest), Evans (Sheffield United), Eastwood (Coventry), Morison (Millwall), Robson-Kanu (Reading)