Aaron Ramsey’s heartbreaking battle with injuries has once again seen him withdraw from a Wales squad – this time just hours before he was due to return as part of Craig Bellamy’s 26-player party for the forthcoming qualifiers against Kazakhstan and North Macedonia.

The 34-year old former Arsenal and Juventus star injured his hamstring during Cardiff City’s 2-1 defeat against Luton on Tuesday evening.

Ramsey was all set to be part of Wales’ attempt to reach the 2026 World Cup. It’s understood he is devasted by his latest injury setback.

Prior to the game, he had described “two frustrating… two decent sized injuries,” which saw the midfielder miss competitive club football for Cardiff City from August until a return just last month.

Ramsey’s selection was set to be a major boost for Bellamy. When fit, the midfielder has captained his country – with an expectation he would have done so again when qualifying begins. Tom Lawrence has been called up as a replacement.

Speaking about Ramsey, Bellamy said: “It’s a tough one for him. Football-wise, in a selfish capacity or Wales job, I don’t really care [about the injury] – him as the person is more important.

“The extent of the injury, we do not know. We’ll find out maybe later. But as a person, he tried to be a little bit apologetic towards me. And the first thought in my head was ‘don’t you ever apologise’. I couldn’t be more proud of him as a person.

“He’s actually been one of my favourite players over the last number of years. What he’s done for us as a country, for the club, football here, and what he’s done for young people in Wales, I’m beyond proud to know him.”

Wilson, Ampadu out as Andrews earns call-up

Bellamy already knew he would be without two other hugely influential players, with neither Fulham’s Harry Wilson nor Leeds’ Ethan Ampadu available for selection due to injury.

During Wales’ successful Nations League campaign last autumn, Wilson’s goalscoring and assists were invaluable while Ampadu’s performances for his country saw him reach 50 caps at just the age of 24.

Injury also rules out Ipswich’s Wes Burns and Sheffield Utd’s Rhys Norrington-Davies, but Bellamy – unbeaten in his first six matches as Wales boss – has had a keen eye on spotting and developing young talent.

That process has seen a first call-up for 18-year-old Kai Andrews. The Coventry forward is currently on loan at Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership.

Bellamy and Wales have plenty of in-form attacking options and experience to call on. Sky Bet Championship Player of the Month Dan James will aim to replicate his sparkling club form for Leeds in the red of Wales.

James has scored 10 goals to go with nine assists in his 30 appearance for his club this season, while Tottenham pair Brennan Johnson and Ben Davies will surely have key roles to play.

A total of 26 players have been selected for Wales’ opening 2026 World Cup Qualifying fixtures against Kazakhstan in Cardiff on March 22 and away in North Macedonia 3 days later.

Bellamy added: “We have good players. There will be players coming in, players coming out. There are no excuses – that’s why we used so many players in the last group of games, to be prepared for these scenarios.

“We need to be able to adapt in this group. Kazakhstan is a completely different game to what North Macedonia is going to be.

“As much as I’m really keen on this World Cup, it has to be step by step. Kazakhstan is the most important. They changed their manager in January and now they have a temporary manager. I’m not sure what a that means in an international plan, but I imagine he’s going to be the manager for these games.

“It’s a tough group. They all create their own different scenarios and different problems. But I’d like to believe we’re able to keep improving. That makes me excited and hopefully at the end of it, we get the outcome we all want.”

Wales’ squad in full

Goalkeepers: Danny Ward (Leicester City), Karl Darlow (Leeds United), Adam Davies (Sheffield United).

Defenders: Ben Davies (Tottenham Hotspur), Joe Rodon (Leeds United), Chris Mepham (Sunderland), Ben Cabango (Swansea City), Connor Roberts (Burnley), Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest), Jay DaSilva (Coventry City), Kai Andrews (Motherwell, on loan from Coventry City).

Midfielders: Tom Lawrence (Rangers), Joe Allen (Swansea City), Josh Sheehan (Bolton), Jordan James (Rennes), Ollie Cooper (Swansea City), Sorba Thomas (Nantes, on loan from Huddersfield), David Brooks (Bournemouth).

Forwards: Kieffer Moore (Sheffield United), Brennan Johnson (Tottenham Hotspur), Daniel James (Leeds United), Liam Cullen (Swansea City), Nathan Broadhead (Ipswich Town), Mark Harris (Oxford United), Lewis Koumas (Stoke, on loan from Liverpool), Rabbi Matondo (Hannover, on loan from Rangers).