Craig Bellamy admitted he was left frustrated after watching Wales suffer their first home defeat under his tenure — and aimed a pointed dig at Canada boss Jesse Marsch for celebrating before the final whistle in Swansea.

A thunderous 25-yard free-kick from Derek Cornelius four minutes before half-time gave Canada a 1-0 victory in what proved to be a fiery and physical friendly.

It was only Bellamy’s second defeat in 12 games since taking charge, and his first on home soil.

The contest was anything but a friendly, with English referee Robert Jones showing eight yellow cards in a stop-start encounter that saw both teams lose their discipline.

Bellamy, who made eight changes from the side that beat Kazakhstan 1-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Thursday, admitted he hated losing but took issue with Marsch’s behaviour in stoppage time.

“I still wanted to win, trust me,” Bellamy said. “Honestly, I’m not happy because I really hate losing more than I like winning. I see him [Marsch] celebrating at the end. I’m thinking, I hope I see you at the World Cup. I hope I see you again.

But I have to also be gracious. Jesse was shaking his coaches’ hands before the final whistle. I have to get used to that.”

Wales, who last played in Swansea behind closed doors during Covid in 2020, struggled to cope with Canada’s attacking power as Jonathan David, Tajon Buchanan and Ismaël Koné all went close.

Koné struck the inside of the post, while Luc De Fougerolles volleyed against the bar before Cornelius broke the deadlock with a stunning strike.

Wales improved after the interval, with teenage debutants Ronan Kpakio and Charlie Crew showing promise, but lacked a cutting edge. Mark Harris wasted their best chance late on, firing wide when clean through, while Canada keeper Dayne St Clair denied Daniel James.

Bellamy insisted the match had served its purpose despite the defeat, as he used the game to test the depth of his squad.

“I don’t do excuses. I don’t talk about process. I’m in the here and now, I want to win,” he said. “But we had debuts, it was Charlie Crew’s first start, and we had one or two fringe players.

I needed to see the squad and what they picked up with us. Can they play our way? I was very impressed with that. But that speed of securing balls and seeing pressure, some of our boys have never been exposed to that.”

The defeat means Wales now trail 2-1 in the overall head-to-head record against Canada, who are ranked three places above them in the FIFA world rankings and will co-host the 2026 World Cup.

For Marsch, meanwhile, it was his first win on British soil since leaving Leeds United in February 2023 — and one that left Bellamy determined to cross paths with him again on the biggest stage.