Wales Prepared to Take on Whichever Opponent in World Cup Qualifying Fixture
Wales have won eight of their recent 16 matches under coach Craig Bellamy
Wales' sights are squarely on the upcoming World Cup play-off draw as they prepare for discovering their semifinal and potential final opponents.
Having finished as runners-up in their qualifying group following a dominant 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their biggest success since 1978 – the side will play the semi-final encounter on home soil.
They will meet either Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Kosovan team or Ireland in that fixture on 26 March.
Ex- Wales striker Rob Earnshaw feels the Welsh squad will relish a tie against whichever team following their most recent result at Cardiff City Stadium.
"I know Craig Bellamy, we were teammates with him and his mentality is 'give us whoever, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw stated.
"Many people were saying last night, 'do we really want Ireland as it's that local feel?'. I think many people didn't. But for me, that would be amazing.
"It's that type of situation, yes, we'll take Kosovo or the Bosnians and Albania are competitive and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they are a capable team so it will be challenging.
"However you just feel that we'll take anyone right now and we're confident, and much of that is down to Craig Bellamy."
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The Welsh squad are placed 34th in the FIFA rankings, with the Albanian team 61st, Republic of Ireland 62nd, Bosnia-Herzegovina 75th and Kosovo eighty-fourth.
The Albanian national team had a solid qualification run, with their only losses suffered at the hands of Group K winners England, who secured maximum points without conceding a single goal.
The Premier League's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Albanian squad's more notable names, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford striker Rey Manaj who topped their scoring tally in qualifying with 3 goals.
It is worth noting, Albania have never earned a spot for a World Cup, although they featured at the 2016 European Championship and the 2024 Euros, failing to reach the knockout stages on both occasions.
As Slovenia and Sweden endured torrid runs, with each failing to win a qualification match, their group was a direct battle between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.
The Swiss ended the six-match qualifiers 3 points clear of Kosovo, whose single loss came at the hands of the pool winners.
The Kosovan squad include ex- Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and Mallorca's Vedat Muriqi – his country's historic leading goalscorer – in a squad aiming for a first major tournament appearance.
They have never played the Welsh team.
Bosnia-Herzegovina were defeated only one time in qualifying, and claimed a points more than the Welsh managed in their eight games, but still ended 2 points behind of Group H winners Austria.
They were a quarter of an hour away from clinching a place at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians ensured the teams drew in the last game of qualifying and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the group.
The Welsh have failed to defeat the Bosnians in four matches but did have a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they earned qualification for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.
As his country's historic top goalscorer and most-capped player, ex- Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia's key player.
The veteran was his team's leading goalscorer in qualifying with 5 goals.
Lastly, we have Republic of Ireland.
Having taken only a single point from their opening 3 matches, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side stormed into the playoffs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.
Troy Parrott scored both goals against Euro 2016 winners Portugal before bagging a hat-trick – with the third goal arriving in the 96th minute – as the Irish stunned Hungary to take runner-up place in Group F in thrilling fashion.
Key player Seamus Coleman had a crucial role in his side's resurgence while Premier League goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has made the number one jersey his to keep.
Ireland are without a win in their last four meetings with Wales, losing three of those, though James McClean shattered the hearts of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's men won a decisive World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.
