“I got my arse kicked,” admitted Craig Bellamy after Wales’ 3-0 defeat to England at Wembley. The Wales head coach would not have it any other way. In his usual honest and ruthless fashion, he suggested that the result was not seen as a failure but as a vital reality check. “There’s no such thing as friendlies,” he insisted. Bellamy chose to have this test; in his ideology it is you have to play the best in order to improve and get to the next level. “I’d like our egos to be

England brushed aside Wales with a dominant 3-0 victory in an international friendly at Wembley Stadium, scoring all three goals in an opening 20-minute blitz. Morgan Rogers struck early for his first senior England goal, before Aston Villa teammate Ollie Watkins and the returning Bukayo Saka added their names to the scoresheet. Wales had no response as England’s intensity overwhelmed the visitors from kick-off. Despite this being labelled as a “friendly”, this fixture always