Cyprus wary of wounded Welsh dragons

CYPRUS manager Angelos Anastasiadis concedes that his once ‘little island’ team are no longer viewed as automatic underdogs by opponents.

But he believes facing a Wales side reeling from a heavy home defeat makes John Toshack’s men “very dangerous”.

Last season, Cyprus all but embarrassed the Republic of Ireland in a dramatic World Cup qualifier in Nicosia, where the Irish suffered a pounding but won 1-0. A couple of weeks later Cyprus beat Wales 1-0 in Limassol.

But when you batter the Irish 5-2 in a Euro 2008 qualifier like Cyprus did on Saturday then people start taking you a lot more seriously. Anastasiadis has Champions League-standard strikers at his disposal in Olympiacos pair Ioannis Okkas and Michalis Konstantinou who have scored 38 goals between them for their country.

“I have always believed my side has the capability to be a good side so I have always felt they were not really underdogs,” said the Cyprus manager.

“But that feeling is only enhanced by results like we achieved against the Irish on Saturday. It gives us even more confidence as a team. We feel we can target a victory wherever we go, home or away. But sometimes we can be badly beaten like we were in Slovakia.

Meanwhile, skipper Craig Bellamy has called for “professional pride” from his young Wales side. The Liverpool striker has at least been allowed to concentrate fully on his football after his court appearance on an assault charge – which he denies – was surprisingly adjourned this week.

There were fears that Toshack would have to re-organise training for the Cyprus clash around Bellamy’s date with Cardiff magistrates, but now the 27-year-old will have to wait until Friday for a new hearing and yet another date to be set; the case having been delayed three times now.

Whether Welsh consciences are clear after Saturday’s horror show when they were hammered 5-1 by Slovakia in Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium is an arguable point. But at least they have the chance to make amends in front of their own fans tonight.

Bellamy said: “The first person I had a text from on Saturday was my mate Gary Speed, a great Wales captain. He just said ‘I know how you feel. But professional pride should now take over. If you are young in this game and things like that don’t hurt, you won’t be in the game for very long.”

But Bellamy warns that Cyprus, who would once have been seen as minnows even by Wales, will now be a tough nut to crack.

Bellamy said: “We have a good chance to put things right, even if Cyprus will be a lot harder than people think. I watch a lot of the Irish games on television, show an interest because I’ve had a few colleagues in their squad. And last season the Irish played them in Nicosia and somehow managed a 1-0 win.

“Sure Cyprus have weaknesses, everyone does. But this is not a little island team coming to face us, they know what they are doing. Going forward they are a good side. They have Champions League pedigree.”

Toshack is pondering what changes, if any, he makes from Saturday. But speculation now is that he will give most of those same players the chance to make amends for the previous disaster.

Veteran goalkeeper Paul Jones could be replaced by 22-year-old Lewis Price, while Cardiff pair Joe Ledley and Paul Parry, plus Wigan’s David Cotterill are in contention, but more likely from the bench.