Craig Bellamy has established a remarkable record against Denmark during his football career, and the Wales head coach now aims to add another chapter to that history when his side travels to Copenhagen on Sunday, 27 September at 17:00 BST.
Following a 1-0 defeat to Portugal in Lisbon, Bellamy faces an immediate test as Wales attempt to arrest a concerning run of form. The team has managed no victories across their five matches in 2026, leaving them in urgent need of a positive result to preserve their Nations League A status and avoid relegation from the competition's top tier.
Bellamy's personal history with Denmark provides genuine grounds for optimism. The Wales manager scored twice against the Danes during his playing career, and those moments proved decisive in different contexts and eras of his international involvement.
How did Bellamy's first Denmark goal change Welsh football?
In Euro 2000 qualifying, Bellamy's intervention proved transformative for Welsh football. During a match in 1998, the young forward came off the bench to score an 87th-minute header that secured a stunning comeback victory and ended Wales' seven-game winless streak in competitive fixtures.
The significance of that moment extended beyond the scoreline. Former Wales striker Iwan Roberts, who sat unused on the substitutes' bench that day, reflected on the broader implications.
It was a magnificent header and probably saved Gould,Roberts told the Feast of Football podcast, referring to manager Bobby Gould.
Gould himself acknowledged the dramatic nature of the turnaround.
All I saw was 14 fantastic Welshmen out there giving everything,the manager said at the time, before adding:
When Craig scored the winner we were all sitting on the bench blowing it over the line.
Yet Bellamy's recollection of the occasion reveals a more complex picture. The Wales head coach has disclosed that his teammates in the dressing room were not uniformly delighted with the outcome, viewing Gould's reprieve with evident frustration.
I got loads of stick for it after the game as well, from the players in the changing room, and they weren't too happy,Bellamy explained.
For Bellamy himself, the moment represented something profoundly personal.
For me it was one of the happiest moments of my career at 19 years of age, and the players looked at me with such disgust,he reflected. The contrast between his elation and his teammates' disappointment underscored the tension surrounding Gould's position at that time.
Bellamy's own assessment of the match itself was characteristically candid.
The kit was awful; I looked awful,he said.
I was a young kid coming through at the time, scoring a lot of goals in the Championship. I was 19; everything was going in at that moment. The actual reflection of the game, they battered us. To come on, and it was the furthest thought from my mind that I was going to get a winner. It was crazy.
The historical significance of that 1998 goal has not been lost on the current Wales squad. Jay Dasilva, the Coventry City left-back who was born just six months after Bellamy's decisive intervention in Copenhagen, revealed that the head coach had not previously shared the story with his players. Dasilva pledged to raise the matter with Bellamy following his media commitments ahead of Sunday's Nations League fixture.
What was Bellamy's second Denmark moment?
A decade after his Euro 2000 qualifying heroics, Bellamy inflicted further damage on Denmark in a different context. In November 2008, Wales faced Denmark in a friendly match approximately 15 miles southwest of Parken Stadium, a fixture that also marked Aaron Ramsey's senior international debut.
Bellamy struck decisively in the 77th minute, drilling a shot from around 20 yards past goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen to secure a surprise victory for John Toshack's side.
I asked him to play deeper and go behind, and he still got his chances in the first half and scored the winning goal as well,Toshack said following the contest.
What is the current situation for both teams?
Both Wales and Denmark enter Sunday's encounter from positions of weakness. Denmark suffered a 3-2 defeat to Norway in Oslo on Thursday night in their opening Nations League A fixture, leaving them searching for their first victory since overcoming North Macedonia in the World Cup play-off semi-finals in March.
Wales, meanwhile, has endured an even longer drought. The team has not recorded a competitive victory since beating North Macedonia in November of last year, a run spanning nearly a year without success in matches that matter.
Neither nation qualified for this year's World Cup. Wales suffered penalty shootout heartbreak against Czechia in the play-offs, while Denmark's campaign also ended in similar disappointment. The shared experience of World Cup qualification failure adds another layer to Sunday's encounter.
Denmark manager Brian Riemer has characterised the fixture with Wales as a
must-winsituation, reflecting the urgency both sides feel. Bellamy acknowledged that he could
understand the frustrationsof Danish supporters given their recent results.
What is Bellamy's approach to the challenge?
Despite his personal success against Denmark, Bellamy has adopted a cautious public stance regarding predictions about the outcome. He indicated that it would be unwise to
poke the bearwhen discussing a wounded opponent, suggesting that Denmark, despite their recent struggles, remain a formidable challenge.
Privately, however, Bellamy appears quietly confident that Wales possess the capability to produce a positive result. His side's historical advantage in this particular fixture, combined with Denmark's current vulnerability, offers genuine opportunity for Wales to create what would be a significant headline in their bid to prove they belong in the Nations League's top tier.
The match will be broadcast live on BBC One Wales, BBC Radio Wales, Radio Cymru and 5 Live, with coverage also available on the website and app, plus live text commentary.
