WALES boss Mark Hughes has become embroiled in a row with Coventry City after he lost a tug-of-war over the services of influential striker Craig Bellamy. And Hughes has laid the blame for the loss of his striker at Coventry's feet.

"Our medical people felt he was fit," stormed Hughes. "They spent all of yesterday trying to find some common ground, but Coventry didn't want to budge."

But the Midlands side have angrily hit back, and this morning rejected Hughes' claims they were to blame.

"Craig Bellamy is injured pure and simple," said Coventry City director Graham Hover."We were advised by our medical specialists that Craig needed to rest until at least the pre-season. The Welsh Football Association's own medical specialists agreed with us and it was decided that Craig should not play.

"We did not take this decision on our own, and we didn't force Wales into their decision."The club-v-country row involving Bellamy has raged ever since the striker was selected for the Wales squad to take on Poland and the Ukraine.

And today the Welsh boss was fuming at what he saw as a complete lack of co-operation on the part of the Division One side.

"We tried to reason with the people that we needed to speak to, but they were having none of it," said an angry Wales boss.

Hughes has even cast doubt on the seriousness of the injury that has forced him to let Bellamy go.

"The tendon itself is normal, there's no tear in the tendon, using the medical term there's no lesion, he's just got a bit of fluid there," explained Hughes. Teammate John Hartson hashad visa problems, the Ukranians claiming his passport was to old. But Wales don't anticipate any problems and are confident he will travel.