Wales face Bosnia and Herzegovina in a crucial World Cup play-off semi-final at Cardiff City Stadium on March 26, with the winner moving one step away from qualification for the 2026 tournament.
The victor will host either Italy or Northern Ireland in the play-off final five days later.
Dzeko, who currently plays for FC Schalke 04 in Germany’s second tier, will celebrate his 40th birthday just days before the tie but still captains his country and remains central to their attacking threat.
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Bellamy, who faced the Bosnian striker during their overlapping careers at Manchester City, says age has done little to diminish Dzeko’s influence.
"He was never that speed player, but his link-up play and game intelligence is always going to be high," Bellamy said.
"He's still playing at a good level and he's definitely a dangerous player."
Dzeko’s pedigree at international level underlines Bellamy’s caution.
The striker is Bosnia’s all-time leading scorer with 72 goals in a national-record 146 appearances, and he has continued to find the net regularly during the current qualifying campaign.
Bellamy believes the key to limiting Dzeko’s impact will be keeping Bosnia away from dangerous attacking areas.
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"The idea for us would be to keep Bosnia away from our box because that's when he comes into his own," he explained.
"The more time he's outside the box the benefit it would be for us, so we have to keep him as high away from our goal as possible."
Wales are aiming to qualify for back-to-back World Cups for the first time in their history after previously appearing at the finals in 1958 and again in 2022.
Bellamy’s side secured home advantage for the play-off semi-final after finishing runners-up to Belgium in their qualifying group.
Bosnia also finished second in their group behind Austria, with Dzeko scoring five of their 17 goals during the campaign.
Bellamy expects a difficult contest against a side he believes combines physical strength with tactical organisation.
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“We know Bosnia is going to be a tough game. Physically they are very good, well-organised.
“They are good in both boxes and don’t need too many chances to score.”
Bellamy also highlighted the broader quality within the Bosnian squad, noting that many of their players have developed in some of Europe’s strongest football systems.
"They always produced players for Yugoslavia before the break-up but a lot of their players are born elsewhere now, like Sweden or Germany," he said.
"So their education in football is through top-tier countries and then they go back to Bosnia to represent the country. Their quality and football IQ is very high."
The Wales boss will announce his squad for the play-offs on Tuesday, March 17. He is expected to be boosted by the return of Harry Wilson and Dan James after injury, though there are concerns elsewhere in the squad.
Captain Ben Davies has been ruled out with a broken ankle, an injury that could also threaten his involvement should Wales reach the tournament finals this summer.
There are also big doubts over Chris Mepham and Kieffer Moore due to hamstring problems.
Wales have held discussions with Ashley Phillips about switching his international allegiance from England.
The 20-year-old defender, currently on loan at Stoke City from Tottenham Hotspur, qualifies for Wales through his mother and previously represented the country at under-16 level before playing for England at youth level.
Should Wales navigate the play-offs, they will qualify for the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.
