Bellamy recounts Lisbon airport lockdown as Ronaldo arrived ahead of Portugal clash
Craig Bellamy says he witnessed Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival at Lisbon airport being treated as a lockdown during a pre-season trip while Bellamy was assistant to Vincent Kompany at Burnley, and the Wales head coach now prepares to face Portugal as his side kick-start their Nations League A campaign on Thursday.
Cristiano Ronaldo won the first of his 233 Portugal caps in 2003 and his honours include five Ballon d'Or wins, eight league titles, five Champions Leagues, a European Championship and a pair of Nations League triumphs; Bellamy said the airport episode helped him see the striker as "beyond a superstar." Swansea's Portuguese boss Vitor Matos is also quoted in the source describing Ronaldo as a 'machine'.
Describing the incident, Bellamy said: "So we got to the airport and the police were everywhere. It was on lockdown." He recalled Burnley arriving on a chartered coach with limited VIP access and being held while rows of police and police cars sealed parts of the terminal.
Bellamy continued: "We thought, 'something has happened, there must be a warning here'. Everything was locked off. People in the terminal, you name it. We couldn't get off the coach and we had to wait for what we thought was a security breach or something." He added: "We are stuck on the coach for 10, 15 minutes and suddenly this car turns up, it parks and a guy walks out, goes in the boot, grabs a rucksack and someone else gets out and puts the rucksack on and who is it? Ronaldo."
On Ronaldo himself, Bellamy said: "He is walking on his own with police everywhere and Lisbon airport locked off. Even the police were taking pictures. No-one could bother him. It was the coolest walk I have ever watched for a minute. We were all on the coach and our jaws dropped. Everyone who had been moaning quickly shut up. It was like presidents stuff."
Bellamy noted his last on-pitch encounter with Ronaldo came in October 2008 when the Portuguese forward scored twice for Manchester United in a 2-0 Premier League win over West Ham United at Old Trafford, and he is now due to manage Wales against the "233-cap international" as they travel to Portugal to play at the Estadio Jose Alvalade.
Reflecting on Ronaldo's longevity, Bellamy said: "How can you lock off a whole airport? I would not be able to get my computer through customs in Cardiff airport. What have I just seen? The reason I'm telling the story is because that's how big this guy is. It was like, 'wow'. I'm so glad I saw that moment because he is beyond a superstar." He added: "I'm not surprised he is still playing with the professionalism he has shown. It's also how clever he is, he knows how to protect himself, he knows not to waste his energy at certain times and he's still got the habit of goal-scoring, and you never lose that. We're talking about not just one of the greatest players of our generation, we're talking all generations with what he has been able to do. He's beyond a superstar."
Bellamy said Wales must focus on qualification and fight despite several absences, naming Harry Wilson, Joe Rodon, Karl Darlow, Nathan Broadhead, Dylan Lawlor, Rubin Colwill and Isaak Davies as not available in Lisbon. He urged restraint and effort from his squad: "We have to be excited, but not too excited. We have worked hard to get into League A, so what can we do to stay in it? If we do then it will help us massively and that's the motivation. You want to be in these moments. I'm telling you, when your playing days finish, you won't remember Bury away and all that. These moments you will remember and will live with you. But you also want to remember how you performed. You don't want this to get too much. I want my players to go out and give everything. They should love every second of it. That's the drive for this."
Wales travel to face Portugal at the Estadio Jose Alvalade on Thursday, 24 September, with kick-off at 19:45 BST and live coverage provided on BBC iPlayer, BBC One Wales, BBC Sounds, BBC Radio Wales, Radio Cymru and 5 Live, as well as on the BBC Sport website and app with live text commentary.
