Bellamy calls Haaland a machine as winless Wales host Norway

Wales have not won since last November. Now Erling Haaland is coming to Cardiff.

Wales host Norway at Cardiff City Stadium on Thursday in Nations League A, the top tier of UEFA's competition for national teams. It is a hard introduction to the level. Wales are still without a win since earning promotion, after Sunday's 2-0 defeat away to Denmark in Copenhagen, according to The Guardian.

Head coach Craig Bellamy was blunt about that Denmark display. He said he did not recognise his team and that Wales must improve together. The message was simple. No excuses, better as a unit.

Norway also arrive after a Sunday defeat, 2-1 to Portugal. Martin Ødegaard is a doubt for Thursday after a challenge by Bernardo Silva in that game. Ståle Solbakken's side will still travel as favourites.

Bellamy described Norway as a team on a surge and progressing. The record backs him up. Norway reached the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup. Solbakken has now been head coach for six years, and the wider game there is growing fast.

Two Norwegian clubs, Bodø/Glimt and Viking, are in the Champions League, Europe's leading club competition. Bellamy said that would have seemed like a miracle a number of years ago. He expects Norway to be a force for years, as reported by BBC Sport.

Then there is Haaland. He scored three goals in his past two Norway matches before the trip to Wales. Bellamy said he does not expect the striker to be distracted in Cardiff. He called him a machine.

Off the pitch, there has been noise around Manchester City after the club were found guilty of breaching Premier League financial rules. Norway defender Kristoffer Ajer, who plays for Brentford, said Haaland has shown the same personality and energy in camp.

For supporters in Cardiff, this is the test and the attraction in one night. Wales insist they have earned the right to be in League A. To stay there, they will have to stop one of the most ruthless finishers in world football.