Bellamy had said he wanted to give Allen the «fairytale ending» his Wales career deserved, but that will not happen now.
He was at least given a rapturous welcome by his adoring fans when he came on as a substitute against Montenegro last October, his first international appearance for nearly two years.
But as Allen himself readily admits, he was no longer the force he once was for his country.
A rare misplaced pass against North Macedonia in March almost consigned Wales to a last-gasp defeat in their World Cup qualifier, only for David Brooks to equalise even deeper into added time.
«It was a shocker,» Allen says, now able to laugh at what was a «depressing» moment at the time.
«The team dug me out of a big hole by equalising. But no regrets, it was great to come back and pull on the shirt again.»
Tellingly, Brooks said in his post-match interviews that he and his team-mates were even more determined to level the game so the «legend» Allen was not blamed for defeat.
Even though Wales were able to salvage a draw in Skopje, it is a little sad that Allen was not able to bid farewell on home soil.
Then again, he had avoided such fanfare when he first announced his international retirement.
This time around, the aim was to qualify for the 2026 World Cup but, if those hopes were beginning to fade, Allen felt he could not continue.
«That was a big part of the decision. My instinct told me I wasn’t going to get there,» he says.
«Or, if I did get there, it wasn’t going to be at the level I wanted to be representing my country at a World Cup.»
No World Cup final act and no swansong this summer, as Allen did not entertain the idea of making Wales’ next game — a qualifier at home to Liechtenstein in June — a personal send-off.
«I think it would have complicated things in many ways to have played my last club game, be retired, and then turn up for international football,» he says.
«A tough choice but one I think made sense.»
And so when Wales return to Cardiff City Stadium in June, they will be beginning life after Joe Allen once again.
A nation will show its appreciation for one of its greats, but he will not be on the pitch to soak up the adulation.
For a man who wanted the anonymity of invisibility during his stellar career, that sounds about right.
