Josh Sheehan backs Craig Bellamy’s plan to freshen Wales up for Denmark clash

Josh Sheehan says Craig Bellamy’s plan to freshen up his Wales team for their Nations League tie in Denmark is a sensible move.

Wales boss Bellamy said there would be changes after Thursday’s 1-0 defeat to Portugal in Lisbon given the quick turnaround between games.

The frontline could be one area where Bellamy is seeking fresh impetus.

Daniel James, Sorba Thomas and Kieffer Moore are pressing for starts after all three made positive impacts from the bench when Wales had chances to leave Lisbon with a point.

“The manager has said there’s going to be changes, that’s a good thing and what we need,” said Bolton midfielder Sheehan.

“You have to freshen up the squad and freshen up the team.

“Everyone in this team and squad is ready to play.”

The Copenhagen clash has taken on extra significance after both Denmark and Wales lost their Nations League Group A4 openers.

Erling Haaland scored twice as Denmark were beaten 3-2 by Norway in Oslo on Thursday.

Sheehan said: “I think it (the Portugal game) shows where we’re at as a team.

“We were disappointed, so it shows we know this is a level we want to be at.

“The manager emphasises how good we are and this is what we’ve been working on all week.

“We wanted to show what we’re all about and we did that.

“We were almost there, it was the final little touch that was missing. But it’s a good platform for us.”

Sheehan was part of a three-man midfield in Lisbon, deployed alongside Ethan Ampadu and Jordan James to deny Portugal space between the lines in the final attacking third.

It was perhaps evidence of a more pragmatic approach from Bellamy, who has faced criticism in previous campaigns of his team structure being too open to play against.

The tactic worked well as Wales limited clear-cut chances and Portugal’s winner came through a slice of luck as Joao Felix’s strike deflected off Ben Davies.

Sheehan said: “It’s easy to play with good players like them and it’s important for us we can do that.

“We love having different game plans. This was the one for Portugal, we’ll see what happens in Denmark.

“But I thought it went well and something we can work on.

“All the focus was on Portugal. It’s obviously a quick turnaround, but we’ll move straight on to Sunday’s game now.”