Craig Bellamy has sealed a loan move to Cardiff City, the Bluebirds, and his hometown club. He has left one (sky) blue shirt for another, but is he really happy?
No doubt he still has plenty to offer, despite niggling injuries over recent years, and in some ways he has plenty to prove. A success at Norwich, Coventry, Blackburn, and West Ham, the same cannot be said of his spells at Newcastle, Liverpool and Man City. While he has scored regularly, about 1 in 3.5 despite the injuries and playing out wide a fair few times, he has never really endeared himself to fans and managers. No doubt off the field episodes have soured opinion but will the Welshmen feel he never really delivered at the top level?
Helping Cardiff into the Premiership would be a big achievement for the club and for Wales. Bellamy, surprisingly, has only won a Community Shield and a Scottish Cup, so it would at least add to his footballing CV but it will never add the glory to his career. No doubt he has plenty to be proud of - Captaining his country and gaining 59 caps is an excellent achievement - but would he have preferred to have another crack at the Champions League with Tottenham? What about a cup run with Fulham? Or even a fighting chance of glory with Man City?
Quite a few players end their careers with a last hurrah at their boyhood club. Bellamy has more years left in the tank than most of these players and its not inconceivable that he could get Cardiff promoted and make a real difference in the Premiership for a couple of years. Some might say its the easy route to retirement. The pressures are less and the opposition poorer, and as he is still capable of electrifying pace, Bellamy should stand head and shoulders above the rest.
When all is said and done, I think Bellamy will still have a few regrets, and rue the City management for forcing him into the Championship before he was ready.
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