Interview: Former Wales international Dean Saunders

By Dean Saunders Scored 22 goals in 75 appearances for Wales

Craig Bellamy will be more surprised than anyone that he has been named captain of Wales for their next two Euro 2008 qualifiers against Slovakia and Cyprus.

But he will be thrilled to bits and I think it will be a positive thing for him. He's 27 and it might be a turning point for him.

In fairness, there were not many candidates standing up and saying 'I'm the obvious choice for captain'. The usual skipper, Ryan Giggs, is out injured and most of the rest of the boys are young and inexperienced.

John Toshack has obviously had a long and hard think and decided this will work out well for both Craig and for Wales.

When Craig turns up for training, he trains properly and when he plays he puts 100% effort in Dean Saunders

The appointment has caused some controversy though. Craig has got a court appearance coming up, which is obviously not ideal for him or for Wales.

I know the player well, having been in the same team as him for Wales and then going on to coach him at Newcastle. Obviously, he has had his problems and the way he left Newcastle wasn't ideal.

But these things happen in football. It's never smooth sailing, especially when you are playing in the Premier League and are in the public eye.

Now he will have to lead by example. We have a lot of young players in the squad and he will have to encourage them and bring them on. I am sure he will do that.

One thing I will say is that when Craig turns up for training, he trains properly and when he plays he has a go and puts 100% effort in.

I played under loads of different captains when I was a player - quiet ones, shouters, ones who were a bit mad.

And it didn't matter what they were like as long as they went out on to the pitch, did the business and inspired everyone to follow them.

I cannot see Craig getting the captaincy after these two matches though. Ryan Giggs is the skipper and I think he will be back.

He is a top professional, with a proven temperament, and is a great ambassador for Wales.

The bottom line is that Wales have got to win the next two games and give themselves a chance of qualifying for Euro 2008.

The encouraging thing is that this team will get better and better because we have got a lot of young players.