Wales Set to Challenge Anyone in World Cup Qualifying Draw
The team has won eight of their recent sixteen matches under manager Craig Bellamy
Wales' attention are squarely on Thursday's World Cup playoff fixture as they prepare for learning their semifinal and potential final rivals.
After finished as runners-up in their qualifying pool following a decisive 7-1 triumph over North Macedonia – their largest success since 1978 – the side will host the semifinal encounter on home soil.
They will meet either the Albanian side, Bosnia, Kosovo or Ireland in that fixture on 26 March.
Ex- Wales striker Rob Earnshaw believes the Welsh squad will relish a tie against any team after their most recent performance at Cardiff City Stadium.
"I know Craig Bellamy, I played with him and his approach is 'give us whoever, we're ready'," Earnshaw stated.
"Many people were asking last night, 'do we really want Republic of Ireland because of that local feel?'. In my view a number of supporters didn't. But for me, that could be amazing.
"So it's that type of situation, yes, we'll take Kosovo or Bosnia and Albania are decent and Republic of Ireland, of course, they are a very good team so they'll be difficult.
"But the sense is that we're prepared for anyone at the moment and we're confident, and much of that is because of Craig Bellamy."
Possible Play-off Semifinal Opponents Reviewed
Wales sit thirty-fourth in the world rankings, with Albania sixty-first, Republic of Ireland 62nd, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and the Kosovan side eighty-fourth.
The Albanian national team enjoyed a impressive qualification campaign, with their sole losses coming at the hands of Group K winners England, who secured maximum points without conceding a solitary goal.
Burnley's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are among the Albanian squad's more notable names, though it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who led their scoring chart in the qualifiers with 3 goals.
It is worth noting, the Albanians have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup, though they featured at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, not managing to reach the knockout stages on each occasions.
While Slovenia and Sweden had difficult campaigns, with both not managing to win a qualifying match, their group was a straight shootout between Switzerland and Kosovo.
The Switzerland finished the six-game campaign three points ahead of Kosovo, whose single defeat came at the hands of the pool winners.
The Kosovan squad feature ex- Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his country's all-time leading goalscorer – in a squad targeting a maiden international competition appearance.
They have not yet played the Welsh team.
Bosnia were defeated only one time in the qualifiers, and claimed a point additional than Wales managed in their 8 games, but nonetheless finished two points behind of Group H winners Austria.
They were a quarter of an hour away from clinching a spot at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians ensured the teams drew in the last game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team won the pool.
Wales have not managed to defeat the Bosnians in 4 matches but did have a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they earned qualification for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.
Being his country's all-time leading scorer 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 team's top scorer in the qualifiers with five goals.
And finally, we have Republic of Ireland.
After taken only a single point from their opening three qualifiers, Heimir HallgrÃmsson's side stormed into the playoffs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.
Troy Parrott netted the two goals against the 2016 European Championship winners Portugal before scoring a triple – with the final goal arriving in the 96th minute – as the Irish stunned Hungary to take runner-up place in Group F in thrilling style.
Key player Seamus Coleman played a vital role in his side's revival while Premier League goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the starting position his own.
The Republic of Ireland are winless in their past 4 meetings with Wales, defeated in three of these, although James McClean broke the hopes of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's team won a decisive World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.
