Man City striker Craig Bellamy has been included in Gary Speed's Wales squad to face Australia on Wednesday.
Speed unconcerned over striker's fitness
Manchester City striker Craig Bellamy has been included in Gary Speed's 25-man Wales squad to face Australia in Cardiff on Wednesday.
After spending last season on loan at hometown club Cardiff City, Bellamy is set to start the new campaign without first-team football as he is yet to agree a similar deal, with a proposed move to Celtic having fallen through.
Meanwhile, Tottenham winger Gareth Bale could make a first appearance since October having missed the Carling Nations Cup campaign and the defeat to England through injury.
When asked if he had any concerns over Bellamy's fitness, Speed said: "I would imagine Craig will be champing at the bit. He has been training but he hasn't had many games so hopefully that will be the case.
"We will see how he goes. If he is able to get through the 90 minutes, which I am sure he would like, then great. If he can't, we will make a change.
"I would like his future to be sorted for his sake because I know how passionate he is about his football.
"The quicker he gets settled then the better for everyone. I know him and I know how he works and he just wants to play football."
There are also places for Celtic duo Adam Matthews and Joe Ledley, although the latter missed the Hoops' friendly defeat to Swansea in midweek due to a niggle picked up against Inter Milan.
Dropped
Swansea City winger David Cotterill drops out of the squad, which includes the bulk of those selected for the second group of Carling Nations Cup fixtures, onto the standby list having fallen out of favour at the Liberty Stadium.
Sheffield United striker Ched Evans is included after being charged with rape earlier this week, a charge he denies.
With the friendly falling during the opening week of the Football League season, and days before the Premier League gets under way, Speed has elected to name an unusually long back-up list of nine players should he be faced with withdrawals from his original selection.
He said: "I know a couple of lads have knocks but they will still come along, so that's great. But we have named a large squad and standby list to ensure we are covered in case of any knocks we may have."
Wales squad to face Australia: Hennessey (Wolves), Myhill (Birmingham), Blake (Cardiff), D Collins (Stoke), J Collins (Aston Villa), Eardley (Blackpool), Gabbidon (QPR), Gunter (Nottingham Forest), Matthews (Celtic), Taylor (Swansea), Williams (Swansea), Allen (Swansea), Bale (Tottenham), Collison (West Ham), Crofts (Norwich), King (Leicester), Ledley (Celtic), Ramsey (Arsenal), Robson-Kanu (Reading), Vaughan (Sunderland), Bellamy (Manchester City), Earnshaw (Cardiff), Evans (Sheffield United), Morison (Norwich), Vokes (Wolves).
