Bellamy Autobiography, Golf Club, Riise and Jerzy Getting Bailed Out Of Jail

Craig Bellamy on.. that golf club, John Arne Riise and what really happened in Portugal

In the first fascinating extract from his autobiography, Bellamy tells how Liverpool's infamous Algarve trip descended into chaos

Craig Bellamy’s autobiography, GoodFella, lays bare one of the most notorious incidents in recent English football history.

In February 2007, Liverpool travelled to Portugal for a five-day training camp to prepare for their Champions League second round tie against Barcelona.

On the last night on the Algarve, Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez allowed the players out for a meal but it was disrupted by an argument between Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise, whose nickname was Ginge...

Ginge was a nice enough lad.

He was a bit of a child. He was insanely ­competitive. If there was a competition to see who could ping a shot against the crossbar, he was always mad keen to win it.

People used to make a joke of it and say: ‘I bet Ginge could do that’.

That night at Vale do Lobo, I was sitting with Steve Finnan, who was my ­room-mate, Sami Hyypia and Ginge.

I told Ginge he had to sing a song. I might have said it a couple of times. He said he didn’t want to do it.

I mentioned it again and he snapped. He got s****y about it. He got up and started shouting. “Listen,” he yelled, “I’m not singing and I’ve had enough of you banging on about it.”

Sami told me to ignore him and Ginge left fairly soon afterwards. But as the evening wore on and I had more to drink, it started eating away at me.

At that time, the way I was, I didn’t know how to control my emotions if someone disrespected me in front of the rest of the players.

I am one of the worst people on drink. It doesn’t agree with me.

After a while, I told Finnan we were going.

I told him I wanted to sort it out with Ginge.

“I’m not having that,” I said to Finny.

“What are you on about?” he said.

“That ginger f****** p****, he ain’t speaking to me like that,” I said.

Finny told me to ignore him. He told me to forget it and go to bed.

“I’m not ignoring him,” I said. “I’m going to go to his room.”

Finny told me to calm down.

“No, let’s go to our room,” he said.

He was trying to humour me, like a warder with a madman.

We did go back to our room but I still couldn’t let it go.

We had a shared lounge with bedrooms that were upstairs.

Our golf clubs were in the lounge. I’d got one out as I was stewing over what Ginge had done.

It was an eight iron.

I started taking a few practice swings with it.

“Let’s go and see him now,” I said.

I just wanted to wind Ginge up a bit.

He had tried it on with me once or twice in training. He had given me a little nudge in the back.

I’d just look at him and think ‘F*** off, Ginge.’

So we got round to his room and I knocked on the door. There was no answer.

So I tried the door and it was open. I let myself in and turned the light on.

Ginge was in bed.

He was facing away from me and covering his eyes with his hands because the lights had been switched on.

I just whacked him across the ­backside with the club.

You couldn’t really call it a swing. It was just a thwack, really.

If I’d taken a proper swing, I would have hit the ceiling with my backlift.

Finny, by the way, was hiding behind the door at that point.

Ginge panicked.

He curled up in a ball with a blanket.

“You ever speak to me like that in front of people again,” I told him, “I will wrap this round your head.”

“Listen, I didn’t mean it like that,” he said.

“Yes you f****** did,” I barked at him.

“No, no, I didn’t,” he insisted.

“Yes, you did,” I told him again. “That’s a couple of times you’ve pulled that f****** stunt on me and it won’t be happening any more.”

I was warming to my theme now, like people who have had too much to drink usually do.

I threatened him a few times.

“And if you’ve got a problem with any of this, come and see me in my room tomorrow,” I told him. “Don’t go moaning about it.”

I look back at what I did now and I cringe.

It was pathetic. It was stupidity of the highest level. It was drunken, bullying behaviour.

Eventually, I left.

As Finny and I were going back to our room, the coach pulled up outside and all the players poured off it.

They bumped into us in the corridor and, not knowing anything of what had just gone on, piled into our lounge.

It had been a big night. Nobody even noticed the golf club in my hand. Or if they did, they didn’t mention it.

So the night out continued.

The lounge got wrecked basically.

Sofas were turned upside down, lampshades got knocked off lamps, somebody even chucked a plate at one stage and it split someone’s head open.

By the time I went to bed, that room was not a pretty sight.

The next thing I knew, Finnan was knocking on my door.

“The Gaffer and Pako are downstairs,” he said. ‘Oh, s**t’, I thought. ‘There are a whole number of reasons why they might be here’.

I went downstairs. It was not a pretty picture.

Rafa and his assistant, Pako Ayesteran, were sitting on a sofa that they must have had to pull upright themselves.

Rafa - the most ordered, controlling man I knew - surrounded by utter chaos, by a scene that screamed out loss of control.

There were plates and lampshades everywhere.

Rafa looked at me and told me to put some shoes on before I cut my feet on some debris.

“John Arne Riise has just come to my room to say you attacked him with a golf club,” Rafa said.

“I wouldn’t say I attacked him, exactly,” I said.

I gave him my version. I was already full of remorse.

Rafa looked bemused. It turned out he had had quite a night himself.

A little while later, Dudek appeared with grazes down the side of his face.

“What the f*** happened to Jerzy?” I asked.

After I had left the previous night, things had got out of hand.

Jerzy had refused to leave the bar and the police were called and he had ended up in the cells. Rafa had to go and bail him out.

I actually felt relieved.

‘That’s miles worse than my one,’ I thought as I stared over at Jerzy. ‘That might save me.’

That delusion didn’t last long...


http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/craig-bellamy-autobiography-golf-club-1922686

 

And we still went on to beat Barca!

 

Saw that advertised in the Echo and thought it might be a good read, haha good read is an understatement after looking at that extract.

 

Riise ya grass.

Hahahahahah!

I'm buying this book.

‘That might save me.’

Ha ha ha.
No.

I'm really not into athletes' autobiographies, but Bellamy's might be one to check out. I read a funny passage about his opinion of Shearer on Twitter as well.

Goes to show a good night on the pis* does no harm. Won inthe nou camp after that.

Good times.

Sounds a good read, wonder how much the book costs?

I'm really not into athletes' autobiographies, but Bellamy's might be one to check out. I read a funny passage about his opinion of Shearer on Twitter as well.

Yeah basically called him out for the shithouse that he is!

Doesn't mind speaking his mind does Bellamy.

Sounds a good read, wonder how much the book costs?

Not sure but I did see somewhere today that Craig has said all sales from his book are going to charity.

Not sure but I did see somewhere today that Craig has said all sales from his book are going to charity.

Nice gesture from Craig who already does a lot of charity work

Sounds a good read, wonder how much the book costs?

15 squid mate, it said in the Echo.

Ginge the snitch....love to be on the town with bellers.

Not sure but I did see somewhere today that Craig has said all sales from his book are going to charity.

Sound lad is Craig.

Ginge the snitch....love to be on the town with bellers.

A lot better than going on the pish with bellends mate.

15 squid mate, it said in the Echo.

Thanks Stuey, sounds a good read, pleased that sales going to charity

Another one to add to my library.
Gonna be an excellent read.
Always loved bellers...wish would had used him properly when he first arrived.

Yes I read that they go to the Craig Bellamy foundation. One of my favourite football players. I'll most definitely be buying it.

Read that this morning, quality. Also calls Alan Shearer a sh*t house.

Craig Bellamy on Gary Speed's shocking death and how Kenny Dalglish got him through it

In day two's first exclusive extract from Bellamy's autobiography, the striker revisits the day he lost his friend and idol

Craig Bellamy’s autobiography, GoodFella, lays bare his emotions over the shocking death of Gary Speed, a team-mate with Newcastle and Wales and later his manager at international level.

In November 2011, just days after his Wales team had beaten Norway 4-1 in fine style, Speed's body was found at his Cheshire home. Bellamy, who scored in that victory over Norway, and his Liverpool side were playing later that day...

Gary Speed was a leader. He was probably the person I admired most and someone I tried to emulate.

Throughout my career, I looked up to him and I always took it as a great compliment he, in turn, looked out for me and valued me as a player.

Long before he died, at 42, he had become one of my best friends.

He was a mentor to me, someone whose advice I sought, someone I listened to.

I was a little in awe of him, too, and I certainly knew not to cross him.

I knew he rarely lost his temper, but if he did, it was best to make sure you were nowhere in his vicinity.

And I knew, above all, that he doted on his sons Ed and Tommy.

I was delighted when he took the Wales job in December 2010 and, by the summer of 2011, there was a real feeling he had started to turn things around.

We played Norway in a friendly in Cardiff at the beginning of the November.

Speedo was quiet. I had a coffee with him at the St David’s Bay Hotel and I noticed he had a bit of a beard, which was unusual for him.

His quietness during that week disconcerted me a little bit, but I put it down to the fact he was becoming a manager.

I thought maybe it was just that he was putting a bit of distance between himself and the players.

Everything was evolving fast. We battered Norway 4-1 and I had a quick chat and a bit of a laugh with him after the game and then I headed off.

At the end of the month, Liverpool had a big game against Manchester City at Anfield.

When I got up that Sunday morning, I looked at my phone and had several missed calls.

Two were from Kieron Dyer and one was from my adviser.

When Kieron rang for the third or fourth time, I answered.

“Have you heard about Speedo?” he said. “Shay Given’s rung our agent to say Speedo’s committed suicide,”

“F*** off,” I said. “No chance.”

“I’ve heard he’s hung himself,” Kieron said.

“F****** no chance,” I said again. “You know what Twitter and the internet are like. It’s bulls**t.”

I got in my car to drive to Anfield.

That was the routine on the day of a home match: drive to the ground, hop on the coach to Melwood, do all the pre-match stuff there.

Then my adviser called me.

He was ringing with the same news.

I still didn’t believe it. Not with Speedo.

I rang Shay Given.

“It’s true, mate,” Shay said.

“I don’t believe it,” I said.

I got on the coach at Anfield to go to Melwood.

I went to the back and rang a lady called Suzanne, who worked as a PA for me and Speedo.

I asked her if she had heard anything.

“No, nothing,” she said.

I asked her to find out.

I was starting to freak out.

I rang Speedo’s phone then. It started ringing.

‘He’s alive,’ I thought. ‘He’s alive. Thank f*** for that.’

Stupid, wasn’t it? A dead man’s phone can ring, too.

Suzanne rang back. She was hysterical. She told me it was true.

I couldn’t comprehend it.

Speedo was my idol in football. He was everything I tried to become.

The tears started to fall.

I got off the coach at Melwood and was told Kenny Dalglish wanted to see me in his office.

“Look, mate,” Kenny said, “I don’t know what to say or how to say it but I have been told Speedo committed suicide. He hung himself this morning.”

I started crying.

You don’t get prepared for that.

My mind was racing.

'How the f*** has he done that? Why has he done it? Everything was going so well. Something’s happened. What’s happened?'

“Go home,” Kenny said. “Go back to Cardiff. See your kids. You’re not playing today.”

“I want to play,” I said. “I want to play through it.”

“You can’t play today,” he told me. “You’re not in a fit state of mind. I’m taking the decision, not you. Come back when you’re ready.”

I didn’t want time off. I knew we had Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the Tuesday in a Carling Cup quarter-final. I needed football to get me through it.

“If I go home now,” I said to Kenny, “I will be even worse. I need to train tomorrow.”

I was still crying as I said it.

Kenny has seen too much grief. He knew how to deal with mine.

“Go home, Bellers,” he said.

I didn’t sleep that night.

I was thinking about his kids. He adored them and I couldn’t believe he had left them.

And you know what, I was angry with him, too.

I adored him and looked up to him and had the highest respect for him. And now he was dead and I felt angry with him for leaving like this.

It started to scare me a bit as well.

If he is capable of that, what chance have the rest of us got?

Some time later, at the inquest, his widow Louise described him as ‘a glass half-empty man’ and she was right about that.

He got down easily. He was very cheerful, but he could get uncontrollably down.

There was a side of him which could go.

If you took liberties, or he was worried about something, you could see it in him. You could see him ready to explode.

A lot of players were like that.

I was determined to play against Chelsea. I had to play. I needed to play to help with my grief, to do something to try to escape what had happened.

There was a minute’s applause for Speedo before the game.

I stood in the line with the rest of the Liverpool players. I felt okay.

The Liverpool fans started singing his name.

It was real to me then and I started crying.

I’m a man’s man. I’m not supposed to cry.

I didn’t like Chelsea fans. I didn’t want to cry in front of them. But I couldn’t help it.

The Chelsea supporters didn’t sing his name, but I don’t expect that.

They’re not my cup of tea. They’re not the type of fans I’d want to play for.

‘I’m going to play f****** well tonight,’ I thought.

And Chelsea couldn’t get near me. It was one of the best games I have ever played. We won 2-0 and I set up both goals.

The game was easy after the two days I had just had. It was a performance worthy of Speedo’s memory.

Kenny brought me off 10 minutes from the end and gave me the biggest hug when I got to the touchline, which is typical of him.

Then I sat down on the bench, put a coat over my head and cried.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/craig-bellamy-autobiography-gary-speeds-1924765

Different side to bellers. Love the remarks about the plastics.

Bellers was a real emotional player and a true inspiration . not many players like him around .

Read a few of the abstracts. Admire Bellers a lot. Will be interested in knowing about the man who tends to be quite private...until he is on the pitch. All proceeds go to his charity, which does some fantastic work. Well on Bellers!

Craig Bellamy on why Manchester City's Mancini told him to go home.. for the rest of the season

     
In this exclusive extract from his new book, Bellamy reveals how the Blues' manager over-reacted to his concerns about a knee problem

The atmosphere at Manchester City quickly became tense under Roberto Mancini when he took over in December 2009.

The mood changed. He was not worried about whether players liked him or not. It was of no interest to him.

You could walk past him and he would not even say hello.

Brian Kidd was brought in to be the good cop. But he didn’t really have much of a line into Roberto.

He had no say whatsoever, from what I could see.

I was out for two weeks because of a knee injury and when I came back to training and did some running, Roberto said I would be running the next day, too.

I said I couldn’t do two days in a row because it would aggravate my long-standing knee problems.

He said I had been off for two weeks, so I had to. I told him I couldn’t. I had to stick to my programme.

Roberto called me into his office for a meeting with him, his fitness coach and the club doctor.

He was confrontational from the start.

“Is it OK for you to be out for two weeks and think you can decide what you are doing?” he said.

“I am sticking to my programme, that’s all,” I said. “It has kept me fit all season and I don’t want to risk being injured now.”

“OK, then, you have been away for two weeks,” he said. “Now you can go home for the rest of the season. Go on.”

“What are you on about?” I said.

“Well, you don’t want to train,” he said.

“It’s not that I don’t want to train,” I told him. “I know my knee. I know it will react tomorrow if I train again. And if it doesn’t, my hamstrings will.

“No, no, no,” he yelled.

I went in the next day and trained, but Roberto and I didn’t speak after that.

That was a cut-off.

That was him done with me, really.

Rafa Benitez was harsh. Roberto wasn’t far behind.

He didn’t freeze me out - I still played and put in some good performances - but it became common knowledge we’d had a big ­disagreement and the tension between us grew.

At the end of March, we lost to Everton at ­Eastlands and "The Chosen One" and Mancini had a bout of ­handbags on the touchline.

At the end of the match, Moyes came up to me and we had a bit of a chat.

“What about you two, pushing and shoving?” I said. “Why don’t you just have a fight?”

We had a bit of a laugh about it, and that was it.

The next thing I know, there were rumours that I was being investigated by the club because I had told Moyes he should have battered Mancini.

Or ­something like that.

It was bizarre, but it did worry me a bit.

I didn’t want Roberto to turn against me completely.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/craig-bellamy-autobiography-roberto-mancini-1924768

Craig Bellamy on why couldn't-care-less Robinho was a disgrace at Manchester City

In his new book, Bellamy claims the Blues' Brazilians "didn’t give a s**t. They didn’t train with intensity and if you tackled them, it was like a crime"
 
We had some very good players at Manchester City when I arrived in January 2009, but we were inconsistent.

I saw what the problem was straight away - it was Robinho and the midfielder Elano and a centre-back called Glauber, who ended up only playing once for City.

They had formed a Brazilian clique and, as far as I could see, they didn’t give a s**t.

They didn’t train with any intensity and if you tackled one of them, it was like you had committed a crime.

In the February, we played Portsmouth at Fratton Park. We lost 2-0. Robinho and Elano were a disgrace.

I’d only been there a couple of weeks but I’d had enough of them.

After the game, I had a real go at both of them.

When I got to training on Monday, Robinho called me over.

Elano was standing behind him. Just like he always did.

“Why you talk?” Robinho said.

“Do you think I’m out of order then, yeah?” I said. “I gather you do.”

“I play for Brazil,” Elano said. “I play in the first team. I come here to Manchester City and I don’t play all the time. How do you think I feel?”

“That’s not my f****** problem,” I said. “You had your chance on Saturday. And look how you played.”

“You never had a bad game?” Elano said.

“It wasn’t that you had a bad game,” I told him. “It was just the lack of effort. You weren’t interested. That hurts more.”

“You always talk,” Robinho said. “It should be the manager who talks, not you.”

“If I’ve got something to say, I’ll f****** say it,” I said.

“Okay,” Robinho said, trying to bring the conversation to an end, “don’t talk to me again.”

“What are you on about?” I said. “You mean talk to you as in talking to you at all or talk to you after the game?”

“No, no, we are finished,” he said.

Whatever,” I said. “I’ll lose a lot of sleep over that.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/craig-bellamy-autobiography-robinho-manchester-1924777

You've got to love Bellers ain't ya?

Fukn love bellers!

Straight as a die is Bellers, love the lad.

Goes to show a good night on the pis* does no harm. Won inthe nou camp after that.

Good times.

I remember Souness saying something along the lines of that after a bad defeat they wouldn't go into training the next day they would go the pub and sort stuff out seem to remember winning a few things back then maybe there is something in it.

I knew Bellars had lots of clubs but that's ridiculous.   

Might have to pick that book up, those excerpts are great.

Give Bellamy his due he did not like losing and never threw the towel in,if every Liverpool player had his attitude we would be on top of the world.

You've got to love Bellers ain't ya?

You do.

He's a bit of a throw back in that he seems far removed from the boring robots we seem to have in abundance playing the game today.

After reading those extracts, this is a must get for me.

Hmmm, my birthday next month, would love this as a pressie 

After reading those extracts, this is a must get for me.

Hmmm, my birthday next month, would love this as a pressie 

Is that a hint or a bloody brick?

Is that a hint or a bloody brick?

It's a very strong hint hun 

Haha, Craig is classic, be great to see him back in the prem next year.
We miss these types of characters in the squad.

Interesting insight on the way Benitez does things.

Craig Bellamy lifts the lid on life under Benitez and Dalglish

Bellamy on Benitez

When I walked into Melwood, the Liverpool training ground, I felt as though everything in my career had been leading to this moment. It was the first time I had ever been there and it was like being in a dream.

This was where Bill Shankly had worked. This was the turf that Bob Paisley had walked on. This was where Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush and Robbie Fowler had trained. The facilities might have been new and state-of-the-art but the place reeked of glorious history.

A lot of things went through my mind. It was only a year ago that my name was mud and everybody had been branding me a troublemaker and saying I was untouchable.

I had undergone four operations on my patella tendons and two on my cruciates. I had suffered from episodes of depression.

I even thought of sitting in my garage in Norwich on Christmas Eve, doing my leg presses. This is why I did it. To get here. To get to Melwood. To sign for Liverpool.

I did my medical stuff and then I went upstairs to see Rafa Benitez in his office. I sat down. He was business-like.

He produced a cutting from a newspaper. The page was dominated by a picture of me with a snarl on my face. Most of the time back then I’d have a snarl on my face. It was nothing unusual.

“Why are you looking like this?” he said. I told him I couldn’t remember.

“You can’t play like this,” he said. “This kind of aggression is not what you need as a player.”

I told him I understood. The memory of the game where the incident had happened started to come back to me. It was a match against Sunderland the previous season. Sunderland’s goalkeeper, Kelvin Davis, had shoved me in the back. I had a bad back anyway at that time. I didn’t take too kindly to being shoved in it.

I didn’t mention any of that to Rafa. I could sense it probably wasn’t the right time.

Then he got a board out and started quizzing me about footballing systems. What did I think about this formation or that formation, the positives, the negatives, the benefits of playing between the lines.

Where would I run if a teammate had the ball in a certain position. He asked me about every scenario under the sun. And every answer I gave, even if it was correct, was twisted into another answer.

“When you play up top,” he said, “if this player has it, where would you go?” It was like a multiple choice test. “I’d run to the left,” I said. “Yeah, but run right first, then go left,” he said. The other players told me later that was just typical Rafa.

I was a bit taken aback by his attitude. It was like being in the presence of an unsmiling headmaster. The atmosphere at the club seemed strange, too. It was a place of business and a place of work. There weren’t very many people smiling. There wasn’t a lot of laughter around the place. Even the physios were on edge when they were doing the medical. Everyone seemed uncomfortable and wary.

The next day, I met Pako Ayestaran, Rafa’s assistant and the fitness coach. The fitness routines were not that imaginative.

It was army style, really. Long, plodding runs mainly. It was very professional with heart monitors and fitness belts but there was no camaraderie while they took place. It was all double sessions, tactical work, standing in position, walk-throughs of tactical play. Rafa oversaw it all.

A lot of Rafa’s tactical work was very, very good. He was impressively astute and I learned a lot from him in that area. But he could not come to terms with the idea that some players need an element of freedom and that we express ourselves on the pitch in different ways. He was very rigid.

He worked on specific moves over and over again. It was a bit like American Football in that respect.

Rafa wanted people running designated routes when the ball was in a certain place, just as he had been explaining the first time I spoke to him in his office. The winger comes inside, the full-back overlaps, the forward has to run near post every time.

There was no allowance for the fact that your marker might have worked out what you are doing after a few attempts. You had to keep doing it because it might make space for someone else. I felt like a decoy runner half the time.

But I did learn a lot. Defensively, Rafa was exceptional. He was very good on the opposition and how to nullify their threat and stifle their forward players.

He would use video analysis to go through the opposition’s strengths and weaknesses. Our preparation for games was extremely thorough. Nothing was left to chance. He was the first foreign manager I worked under and I learned quite a bit.

But there was no scope for spontaneity. None. He distrusted that. Of all the managers I have worked with, he trusted his players the least. That’s just how he was. There was not much enjoyment. There were no small-sided games or anything like that.

Everything was tactical with timed drills and routines.

It was a bit like Groundhog Day. You came in and did the same stuff over and over again.

Sometimes strikers like to do finishing at the end of a session but once the whistle was blown at the end of training, Rafa would personally collect the balls and put them in the bag and no one was allowed to do any extra work. He was a total control-freak.

Rotation was something else I had to get used to under Rafa.

One week you would play, the next you wouldn’t. None of the players would ever know until an hour before kick-off who was going to start. I found that hard to adjust to. I found everything about it difficult.

I prepared as if I was going to start because I felt that was the professional thing to do. But I need to get myself into a certain frame of mind when I play. I cut myself off from everybody around me on the day of the game. I get intense about it. In those circumstances, it is very difficult if you are then told an hour before the match that you’re on the bench.

By preparing as though I was going to play, I was also ensuring that the disappointment would be even greater when I didn’t play. So then I started telling myself I had to change tack. I stopped building myself up too much so that it would be easier to deal with the disappointment of not being selected.

But then when I did start, it almost came as a shock to me. I had an hour to get prepared. That was it.

Rafa said he would not release the starting eleven until an hour before kick-off because he didn’t want to give the opposition an advantage. What he meant was that he didn’t want anyone to leak the team early and he didn’t trust players to keep it secret.

He didn’t trust the players on the pitch so he certainly wasn’t going to trust them off it.

Bellamy on Dalglish

People talk about Kenny Dalglish being the greatest Liverpool footballer of all time. He probably is. But you know what, he is the greatest man who has ever played for Liverpool Football Club.

There is no shadow of a doubt about that. To be involved with him was just a huge honour. He was brilliant to play for.

He had such a calming influence over everyone at the club. He was just The King. He was a true man. The humility he shows constantly on a daily basis to everyone was overwhelming. When I say ‘everyone’, I don’t just mean the players. I mean all the employees of the club.

The impression you get of him on the television, defensive and monosyllabic, is the exact opposite of what he is like when the camera is turned off.

Before the Carling Cup final, the manager showed us a short film that illustrated what Wembley meant to Liverpool and what it meant to the club being back there.

I sat there watching Shankly talking and Kenny scoring that magnificent winner against Bruges in the 1978 European Cup final.

And I thought about all my years of growing up and wanting to be part of this club. When the film ended, there were tears in my eyes.

For someone like me, you don’t get much better than playing for Liverpool under Kenny Dalglish.

When Kenny was fired a few months after bringing Liverpool their first trophy for six years, I knew for sure it was time to go.

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/craig-bellamy-lifts-lid-life-4041459

 It's funny how some managers are exactly as you'd imagined. Kenny for instance is exactly how I thought he would be, no surprises he had the successes he had as our manager.

Bellamy on Dalglish: He Was Brilliant He Was ......THE KING.

Bellamy on Dalglish: He Was Brilliant He Was ......THE KING.

^^^^^All of that mate.

Holy sh*t i have to have a read at this always like Bells Legend!

God love ya Bellers, he trully is ''a mans man'', he speaks from the heart, can't wait to read his book, i just wish he had come to us earlier in his career, and to donate all funds to charity is a fantastic gesture alongside all his other work, well in Craig, YNWA.

Craig Bellamy = Honorary Scouser.

It's funny how some managers are exactly as you'd imagined. Kenny for instance is exactly how I thought he would be, no surprises he had the successes he had as our manager.

Rafa exactly how I imagined too. All work, little play for our lads.

Rafa exactly how I imagined too. All work, little play for our lads.

I know shocking isn't it, treating the training ground like a place of work.

If most footballers had to do a normal 9-5 job sitting in an office in front of a computer, they'd be beaked up in the bogs fingering 19 year old HR girls by 10am!

I know shocking isn't it, treating the training ground like a place of work.

If most footballers had to do a normal 9-5 job sitting in an office in front of a computer, they'd be beaked up in the bogs fingering 19 year old HR girls by 10am!

That's why I wouldn't change my office job for the world...

That's why I wouldn't change my office job for the world...

Hahaha some of the girls in the office I used to work in up in Southport were unreal!

Hahaha some of the girls in the office I used to work in up in Southport were unreal!

I wish I had some here.

I'm the youngest person here, and the ratio of women to lads is not that high.

Not seen a girl my age here, there's 650 working here!!

Great stuff from Bellers, honest, from the heart and exactly how it is.

Nothing in their surprises you and it is as you expect but it's nice to hear your impressions are right.

Gold.

Craig Bellamy on... Charlie Adam

In today's final extract from his new book, Craig Bellamy tells of how he was alarmed at the beginning of his new adventure at Liverpool when he saw Charlie Adam in training for the first time.

I met Charlie a couple of times before pre-season training began, and he seemed a nice lad.

He wasn't the brightest but then footballers rarely are. I consider myself to be among the cleverer footballers around.

Charlie is a true Scot, and he loves his beer. It's all he ever talked about at the start, having had a brutal close season with a series of lads holidays abroad.

Charlie wasn't a shy lad and told the squad all about his escapades, including vomiting into the swimming pool at 2pm one afternoon.

He was a fat b***ard too, Charlie, and he could eat for Scotland.

Some of the lads called him 'Rab', after the TV comedy character Rab C Nesbitt.

The first day at training and Charlie had a 'mare. He couldn't control the ball to save his life, couldn't get his breath and kept falling over while trying to run with the ball.

Players are always judging others, never more so than on the first day - first impressions count and though some of the lads found it hilarious, most were not impressed.

"Who's this c**t?", one respected player said to me.

"I can't believe we've signed this useless c**t", said another.

While one of the club's iconic players said to me, "I'd played against him last season and I knew he was sh*te, you're gonna need to step it up this season, Craig - cos this c**t's w*nk."

Charlie didn't have the best of seasons and he was sold on to Stoke. I wish him well.

Gold.

Craig Bellamy on... Charlie Adam

In today's final extract from his new book, Craig Bellamy tells of how he was alarmed at the beginning of his new adventure at Liverpool when he saw Charlie Adam in training for the first time.

I met Charlie a couple of times before pre-season training began, and he seemed a nice lad.

He wasn't the brightest but then footballers rarely are. I consider myself to be among the cleverer footballers around.

Charlie is a true Scot, and he loves his beer. It's all he ever talked about at the start, having had a brutal close season with a series of lads holidays abroad.

Charlie wasn't a shy lad and told the squad all about his escapades, including vomiting into the swimming pool at 2pm one afternoon.

He was a fat b***ard too, Charlie, and he could eat for Scotland.

Some of the lads called him 'Rab', after the TV comedy character Rab C Nesbitt.

The first day at training and Charlie had a 'mare. He couldn't control the ball to save his life, couldn't get his breath and kept falling over while trying to run with the ball.

Players are always judging others, never more so than on the first day - first impressions count and though some of the lads found it hilarious, most were not impressed.

"Who's this c**t?", one respected player said to me.

"I can't believe we've signed this useless c**t", said another.

While one of the club's iconic players said to me, "I'd played against him last season and I knew he was sh*te, you're gonna need to step it up this season, Craig - cos this c**t's w*nk."

Charlie didn't have the best of seasons and he was sold on to Stoke. I wish him well.

I read that this passage is fake.

I read that this passage is fake.

It is. Still funny.

Riise said on twitter that Rafa came to his room after the incident, not the other way round.

It was very stupid of Bellars but at least he has the balls to admit he was wrong and made a mistake. I must admit I wasn't a big fan of his aggressive character before, though I did enjoy his calmer 2nd spell with us.

His views on Rafa and Dalglish are interesting too. I would love to hear a bit more about Kenny's work methods as well, cause we all know what's his personality is like.

Few class articles there, love Bellers.

Interesting that it was a change of manager that confirmed his departure.

Interesting hearing his words regarding Rafa. Not sure if I could work under that scrutiny for too long.

Interesting hearing his words regarding Rafa. Not sure if I could work under that scrutiny for too long.

It would have interesting to get Bellamy's take on Hodgson if he was still there!

Gold.

Craig Bellamy on... Charlie Adam

In today's final extract from his new book, Craig Bellamy tells of how he was alarmed at the beginning of his new adventure at Liverpool when he saw Charlie Adam in training for the first time.

I met Charlie a couple of times before pre-season training began, and he seemed a nice lad.

He wasn't the brightest but then footballers rarely are. I consider myself to be among the cleverer footballers around.

Charlie is a true Scot, and he loves his beer. It's all he ever talked about at the start, having had a brutal close season with a series of lads holidays abroad.

Charlie wasn't a shy lad and told the squad all about his escapades, including vomiting into the swimming pool at 2pm one afternoon.

He was a fat b***ard too, Charlie, and he could eat for Scotland.

Some of the lads called him 'Rab', after the TV comedy character Rab C Nesbitt.

The first day at training and Charlie had a 'mare. He couldn't control the ball to save his life, couldn't get his breath and kept falling over while trying to run with the ball.

Players are always judging others, never more so than on the first day - first impressions count and though some of the lads found it hilarious, most were not impressed.

"Who's this c**t?", one respected player said to me.

"I can't believe we've signed this useless c**t", said another.

While one of the club's iconic players said to me, "I'd played against him last season and I knew he was sh*te, you're gonna need to step it up this season, Craig - cos this c**t's w*nk."

Charlie didn't have the best of seasons and he was sold on to Stoke. I wish him well.

Clearly fake, but still funny nonetheless 

 Bought this on the ipad a couple of days ago and have nearly finished it. Cracking read, although most of the best bits have been released already. Craig is very much a true red, and he couldn't possibly speak higher of Stevie and Carra. Even Sounness who he fell out with gets spared any serious criticism. He's not really a fan of Rafa, but that happens sometimes   

Bought the book yesterday in Waterstones. Paid the full amount simply as its for charity, otherwise would have bought it online. Only rad first few chapters but so far a good read and haven't even got to most interesting parts.

Be interested to hear what he says about Sir Bobby Robson, always seemed like a man players would love to play for and I always like to hear about the training ground routines/styles different managers have.

Few class articles there, love Bellers.

Interesting that it was a change of manager that confirmed his departure.

 Interesting indeed. He does make it quite clear in his book though that not only was Brendans appointment not in any way the reason for him leaving (It was mainly because he was divorcing from his wife and wanted to be near his kids) but he also says he was hugely impressed by Brendan as a man. It seems from reading the book that the only reason he took so long to finally decide was that Brendan made a good impression on him. Also, the boss did actually make it quite clear that he wanted Craig to stay.

 As far as Bobby Robson is concerned, he devotes a whole chapter to saying that he was the best manager that he ever worked with and how much he loved him. He simply cannot say enough good things about Bobby. Infact, he is pretty complimentary about nearly everyone. Only Bobby Gould for Wales and the odd other person here and there weren't his cup of tea at all.

 Great book though, and Bellers went up in my estimations even more having read it.

My lads got me the book for fathers day and i can't wait to get tucked in to it .

Just finished it. Polished it off in two days.

What an awesome character he is. Can't help but love him. He is the kind of man I respect. His attitude is first class and to see this side of him was great.

YNWA Bellers. Top class.

Just finished it. Polished it off in two days.

What an awesome character he is. Can't help but love him. He is the kind of man I respect. His attitude is first class and to see this side of him was great.

YNWA Bellers. Top class.

Agree mate, absolute pleasure to read. I've had to put it down for a bit to get on with other things but from what I have read, my opinion on Craig hasn't altered. Okay, if anything it has made me think of him even higher than I already did.

Bit cunty what he did to Riise. He wouldn't have done that to Stevie or Carra would he?

The rest is funny as F**k. Jerzy getting nicked hahaha.

Bit cunty what he did to Riise. He wouldn't have done that to Stevie or Carra would he?

The rest is funny as F**k. Jerzy getting nicked hahaha.

Yeah but i doubt Stevie or Carra would be a F***ing pest like 'Ginge' seemed to be. Seemed to give what he got, Bellars.

Yeah but i doubt Stevie or Carra would be a f**king pest like 'Ginge' seemed to be. Seemed to give what he got, Bellars.

Pick on the annoying less popular kids eh...


I love Bellers, but I imagine he could be a pain in the arse at times.,

Yeah but i doubt Stevie or Carra would be a F***ing pest like 'Ginge' seemed to be. Seemed to give what he got, Bellars.

He was a team mate and no call for that sh*t from Bellars , Riise gave us some awsome times remember . I like Bellars as much as the rest of ye but he was a bellend to have done it to Gingie .

He was a team mate and no call for that sh*t from Bellars , Riise gave us some awsome times remember . I like Bellars as much as the rest of ye but he was a bellend to have done it to Gingie .

Doesn't have to have been anyone like Riise, if it was anyone who was a teammate, it's uncalled for. Almost a bit like when Ashley Cole shot the youth team player. Overall, however, I really admire Bellamy and I am looking forward to reading all the tales from his Anfield days.

Doesn't have to have been anyone like Riise, if it was anyone who was a teammate, it's uncalled for. Almost a bit like when Ashley Cole shot the youth team player. Overall, however, I really admire Bellamy and I am looking forward to reading all the tales from his Anfield days.

I agree mate , it doesn't matter who he was , he wore the liverbird on his chest and that's all that matters .

I agree mate , it doesn't matter who he was , he wore the liverbird on his chest and that's all that matters .

My thoughts exactly. For me, it doesn't matter what team players play for, that sort of behaviour isn't really acceptable. I wouldn't expect it from lads in my Saturday Amatuer league team.

Bellars has already admitted that what he did was a cuntish thing to do. He's right but then again it's quite funny and part of Anfield folklore now, especially considering what we went on to do at the Camp Nou not long after.

Bellars has already admitted that what he did was a cuntish thing to do. He's right but then again it's quite funny and part of Anfield folklore now, especially considering what we went on to do at the Camp Nou not long after.

To an extent yes..  The folklore bit.. Not really the funny bit.

Not if you put yourself in that position

Not condoning what he did, to be clear. I think when even he admits it was foolish, it must of been clearly out of order what he did.

However, Riise played his part. Bellars doesnt come across as one to start trouble if it isn't warranted. Yeah he's a pest, but he isn't a bully.

Anyways, i recommend it to anyone. Might not be the most interesting of autobiographies but i rarely find a footballers autobiography boring. Really interesting to read about his life and career choices. Has some dry humour in there too. Really witty bloke.

When he spoke of the Chelsea fans, i loved it. Even the same about the Mancs. His respect for his past clubs is really admirable, too. Even has a nice word about BR in there. His adulation of the King, Stevie, Carra, God and even Bobby Robson is really special. Knows his stuff. Can see him being a manager in the future and i have no doubt it will be at Cardiff.

Yeah but i doubt Stevie or Carra would be a f**king pest like 'Ginge' seemed to be. Seemed to give what he got, Bellars.

That doesn't mean you can start cowardly threatening people with a golf club. Quite surprised Riise didn't tune him in there and then.