🔗 Share this article

The team's attention are squarely on Thursday's World Cup playoff fixture as they prepare for discovering their semi-final and potential final rivals.

After ended second in their qualifying group thanks to a dominant 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their biggest success since 1978 – the side will play the semifinal encounter on their own turf.

They will play against either Albania, Bosnia, the Kosovan team or Republic of Ireland in that match on 26 March.

Ex- Wales forward Rob Earnshaw believes the Dragons will welcome a tie against any team after their latest result at Cardiff City Stadium.

"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, I played with him and his mindset is 'give us anyone, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw commented.

"A lot of fans were asking last night, 'should we actually want Republic of Ireland as it's that derby feel?'. In my view many supporters were hesitant. But personally, that could be incredible.

"So it's that type of situation, indeed, we'll take the Kosovans or the Bosnians and the Albanians are decent and Ireland, of course, they are a capable team so it will be challenging.

"However you just feel that we're prepared for anyone at the moment and we're confident, and a lot of that is down to Craig Bellamy."

Possible Playoff Semifinal Opponents Assessed

The Welsh squad are placed 34th in the world standings, with Albania sixty-first, Republic of Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia 75th and the Kosovan side 84th.

The Albanian national team had a strong qualifying run, with their only losses coming at the hands of their group winners England, who claimed maximum points without allowing a single goal.

The Premier League's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Red and Blacks's prominent names, though it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who topped their scoring chart in the qualifiers with three goals.

It is worth noting, the Albanians have not yet earned a spot for a FIFA World Cup, although they participated at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, failing to advance to the knockout stages on both times.

As Slovenia and Sweden had torrid campaigns, with both not managing to win a qualification match, Group B was a straight shootout between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.

The Swiss finished the six-match qualifiers 3 points ahead of Kosovo, whose single loss was at the hands of the group winners.

The Kosovan squad feature former Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his nation's historic top scorer – in a team aiming for a maiden international competition appearance.

They have never played Wales.

Bosnia lost just once in qualifying, and claimed a points more than the Welsh achieved in their 8 games, but still finished 2 points adrift of Group H winners Austria.

They were 13 minutes away from securing a spot at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's equaliser for the Austrians meant the pair drew in the final game of qualifying and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the group.

The Welsh have failed to defeat the Bosnians in four attempts but did have a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they qualified for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.

Being his country's historic top goalscorer and record appearance player, ex- Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia's key player.

The 39-year-old was his squad's top scorer in the qualifiers with 5 goals.

And finally, we have Ireland.

After secured just one point from their first three qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side stormed into the playoffs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.

Troy Parrott netted the two goals against Euro 2016 winners Portugal before bagging a triple – with the final goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Irish surprised Hungary to take runner-up place in Group F in thrilling style.

Talisman Seamus Coleman played a crucial role in his team's resurgence while Premier League goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has made the number one jersey his to keep.

The Republic of Ireland are without a win in their last four meetings with Wales, losing 3 of those, although James McClean shattered the hopes of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's team won a decisive World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.