Wales Bale Out for Safety

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Wales manager Chris Coleman says he was not prepared to risk Gareth Bale in their 2-1 defeat away by Macedonia.

World-record signing Bale was named on the bench for the World Cup qualifying loss in Skopje, which finally ended Wales' slim hopes of making the finals.

But despite that, Coleman said Bale's lack of match fitness after injury meant he was never going to play.

"We cannot risk Gareth Bale or any of our players, we've got to send them back to their clubs," Coleman said.

"He's only probably trained three or four times in the last two months.

"He's such an athlete and he wanted to come. He came the evening of his unveiling in Madrid, he's trained the next day, he's trained three days - he's not ready.

"We can't take that risk. If he comes on and, God forbid, anything happens, then how is that building a relationship with Real Madrid?

"We know we need to win the game but we're also looking at the bigger picture.

"We can't be sending back players injured because we're taking chances - it's not fair on them."

Wales now need to beat Serbia in Cardiff on Tuesday to maintain any hope of claiming third place in Group A, which would boost their seeding when the draw for Euro 2016 qualification is made.

Coleman said there was an outside chance Bale could come off the bench against Serbia.

"He's never going to be ready to start, it's as simple as that," Coleman said. "The fact he's turned up and is trying to be fit for us is such a huge positive and if he's ready then he may play a part.

"We'll see how he reacts between now and Tuesday."

Coleman, who suffered the embarrassment of arriving late in Skopje on Thursday after missing the team flight from Cardiff because of a lost passport, said he regretted a missed opportunity to beat Macedonia.

Ivan Trickovski had given Macedonia the lead after a deflected free-kick fell kindly, but Wales fought back through an Aaron Ramsey penalty he won himself.

However, sloppy play on the edge of Wales' own area let Aleksandar Trajkovski snatch a late winner for the home side.

"I'm gobsmacked really. You know anything can happen and you get nervous but I was very confident," said the Wales boss.

"Even when we went 1-0 down there was a feeling about us and an atmosphere about us that was positive and I felt that we were going to win the game.

"[Craig] Bellamy hits a post, Ramsey sticks a penalty in and we were always the one in the ascendency. Half-time came too quickly for us.

"What's missing at the minute is really sticking the knife into teams when we're on top and finishing them off."

Related articles

• Macedonia 2-1 Wales: Gareth Bale is an £85m unused sub as late strike denies Dragons
• Not right to risk Bale, says Coleman
• Macedonia 2 - 1 Wales: Gareth Bale stays on bench as Chris Coleman's side slump to defeat
• Chris Coleman: 'I didn't consider playing Gareth Bale'
• Bale sees Wales slip to defeat
• Macedonia 2 Wales 1 : Welsh qualification hopes shatter with a costly defeat

Coleman Includes Bellamy for NYC

Wales manager Chris Coleman has named Craig Bellamy in a 23-man squad to play Mexico in New York on 27 May.

Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey will miss out with a torn cruciate ligament, but Liverpool striker Bellamy - whose continued participation with Wales had been in question - will make the trip.

Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey, who could feature in the GB Olympic team, are also selected.

Bellamy is also in a provisional 80-man squad for the London Games.

Coleman hopes the 32-year-old will prolong his international career to play in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, which begin in September.

"I've included him in my squad. I wouldn't have included him if I didn't think he wanted to continue with us [Wales]," said Coleman.

"If Craig wants to make a statement about what he intends to do maybe that will quash all the rumours.

"But he is very, very much a part of us going forward about this next campaign and we will have a better chance of doing something special with Craig rather than without him.

"Until he tells me otherwise I'm going to continue to pick him."

Missing out on selection are striker Rob Earnshaw, and defenders Danny Gabbidon and James Collins.

But Coleman insisted the trio are still in his plans for the qualifying campaign.

"James Collins has lost his place with Ashley Williams really being really the mainstay and Darcy Blake has done well at international level," explained Coleman.

"They haven't done anything wrong there. James has had a long hard season, he has had a few niggles.

"I know all about James. I'm not going to learn anything from James. I'm not going to learn anything from Danny or Robert in this game.

"I may learn other things from players I don't know so well. I spoke to Robbie and Danny and they are fine.

"It's not me burning bridges with these experienced players. On the contrary - they are very much part of our make-up and squad going forward."

West Ham United midfielder Jack Collison has been left out as Coleman wants to give him a rest after playing more than 30 games this season, a decision the manager said he made before he was injured.

Collison dislocated his shoulder as the Hammers beat Cardiff to reach the Championship play-off final, but West Ham are hopeful he will be available for the final on 19 May.

Neal Eardley of Blackpool will be part of that final with Blackpool. He has been named in Coleman's squad but it unlikely to make the trip to New York.

The only new face in the squad is Chelsea goalkeeper Rhys Taylor.

Wales' friendly with Mexico at MetLife Stadium is effectively Coleman's first proper game in charge.

He was appointed before the 1-0 defeat by Costa Rica in February, a match to honour former manager Gary Speed.

Coleman decided to take a back seat for that match, with assistant Osian Roberts in charge, as Wales paid its respects to Speed on an emotional night in Cardiff.

Wales squad: Jason Brown (Aberdeen), Lewis Price (Crystal Palace), Rhys Taylor (Chelsea), Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest), Neil Taylor (Swansea City), Sam Ricketts (Bolton Wanderers), Ashley Williams (Swansea City), Adam Matthews (Celtic), Neal Eardley (Blackpool), Darcy Blake (Cardiff City), Joe Allen (Swansea City), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Andrew Crofts (Norwich City), David Vaughan (Sunderland), Joe Ledley (Celtic), Andy King (Leicester City), David Edwards (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur), Craig Bellamy (Liverpool), Hal Robson-Kanu (Reading), Steve Morison (Norwich City), Simon Church (Reading), Sam Vokes (Wolverhampton Wanderers).

Stand-by players: Owain Fon Williams (Tranmere Rovers), Adam Henley (Blackburn Rovers), Rhoys Wiggins (Charlton Athletic), Billy Bodin (Swindon Town), David Cotterill (Barnsley - released), 

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Neville and Scholesy Soul Kissing

Two Manchester United and England legends were the toast of the football writing world on Sunday night as Paul Scholes and Gary Neville became the first double recipients of the tribute award of the Football Writers' Association.

Both players were lauded by some of the biggest names in football, despite the two individuals being very different.

Their Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson described their respective personalities.

He said: 'I think that Gary is a very forthright guy and speaks the truth and is prepared to say it and he has always been that way.

'There is no grey area with Gary, it is very black and white, whereas Paul doesn't say much but when he says something it is worth listening to.'

Sir Bobby Charlton believes United will never find replacements for the duo.

'Paul and Gary are irreplaceable and the highest compliment I can pay them is that their legacy is as good as any who have played for this club,' Charlton said. 

'Gary was a bit different. Even at a young age he was inspirational. He was the captain, a leader, a talisman. Gary has been a real bonus for United because of his depth of feeling for the shirt, but I am proud of all of them.'

Long time friends Neville and Scholes were also full of praise for one another, with the former now working as a television pundit and Scholes recently coming out of retirement to continue his quest for silverware at Old Trafford.

Scholes, 37, said: 'Obviously Gary has had a big impact. He has been a fantastic right-back, not just for United but for England as well.

'I have grown up with Gary and known him quite a while and I know what a good player he is, how much he has done for the club and how big a fan of he is of Man United.'

Neville, who retired in February 2011, said of Scholes: 'He is a great player and the best I've ever played with; to be fair most players who have played with him or against him say the same thing.

'You can think about people who played for the club for three, four or five years and had a great impact, but Scholesy and Ryan (Giggs) have played for the club for 20 years and had an impact season after season.

'You see him getting mentioned in the same league as (Zinedine) Zidane and Xavi, which he constantly does, not by me but by people who know much more about the game than me and who have played against him.