Wales boss Craig Bellamy is a wanted man and rightly so, says Sorba Thomas | OneFootball

Sorba Thomas is not surprised head coach Craig Bellamy is in demand and that teams are trying to "nab" him off Wales.

Bellamy's first management role has seen him win promotion to the top tier of the Nations League but miss out on World Cup qualification after losing a play-off semi-final to Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties.

The Wales boss is contracted until the end of Euro 2028 and has been linked with far more lucrative club jobs, including that of former team Celtic who have veteran boss Martin O'Neill in interim charge until the end of the season.

Football Association of Wales chief executive Noel Mooney has described Bellamy as a "football genius", and Stoke winger Thomas says "a lot" of players have improved under the 46-year-old.

"You can see how different it is and what he's brought out of the players," Thomas said.

"Not just myself, but a lot of the boys. You are seeing some of the boys playing their best football.

"It's amazing to see. I feel my game has elevated since he became involved and it's helped me at club level as well.

"I'm not surprised that he is a man in demand. I don't blame teams trying to nab him off us and we've got to try and keep him as long as possible because I feel success is going to come."

Thomas scored his second international goal against Northern Ireland on Tuesday as Wales came from behind to draw 1-1 in Cardiff.

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Sorba Thomas scored against Northern Ireland (David Davies/PA Wire)

The friendly fixture had to be fulfilled after both sides lost their respective World Cup play-off games to Bosnia and Italy.

Thomas said: "It was tough for us as a team and the nation in general, but it was the same for them and other countries that missed out.

"I felt the friendly came at the perfect time as opposed to not having the game and we're waiting too long (to play).

"A lot of the young boys are going to take longer (to get over it) than more of the experienced lads, but we've got to know we can't let these things happen again."

Wales will play two summer friendlies, with a home game against England's World Cup rivals Ghana confirmed for 2 June.

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Wales have two summer friendlies lined up (Action Images via Reuters)

After that, Wales return to competitive action in the autumn with Nations League A fixtures against Portugal, Denmark and Norway.

"With all good stories, there has to be some kind of blip at the beginning," Thomas said.

"This is our blip and it's now about going into two friendlies in June with the right mindset and then the Nations League with a bit of confidence.

"We're in League A and we'll be playing better teams and coming up against top players.

"It will be a good experience and it's about not having moments that we had on Thursday. It's about looking up and looking towards the future."