Wales Set to Face Whichever Opponent in World Cup Play-off Draw
Wales have won 8 of their recent sixteen matches with manager Craig Bellamy
The team's focus are firmly on the upcoming World Cup play-off draw as they await learning their semifinal and potential final rivals.
After finished second in their qualification pool following a decisive 7-1 win over North Macedonia – their largest success since 1978 – Wales will play the semi-final match on their own turf.
They will face either the Albanian side, Bosnia, Kosovo or Ireland in that match on 26 March.
Former Wales striker Rob Earnshaw thinks the Dragons will welcome a tie against any opponent following their latest performance at Cardiff City Stadium.
"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, we were teammates with him and his approach is 'bring on anyone, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw said.
"Many supporters were wondering recently, 'do we actually want Ireland as it's that local atmosphere?'. I think a number of people didn't. But for me, that would be fantastic.
"So it's that type of situation, indeed, we'll take the Kosovans or Bosnia and the Albanians are not bad and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they are a capable team so it will be difficult.
"However you just feel that we're prepared for anyone right now and we're confident, and much of that is because of Craig Bellamy."
Potential Play-off Semifinal Rivals Evaluated
The Welsh squad are placed thirty-fourth in the world standings, with the Albanian team sixty-first, Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia-Herzegovina 75th and the Kosovan side eighty-fourth.
The Albanian national team had a solid qualifying campaign, with their only defeats suffered at the hands of their group winners England, who claimed maximum points without allowing a single goal.
The Premier League's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Albanian squad's prominent names, though it was former Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who topped their goal tally in qualifying with 3 goals.
Importantly, Albania have not yet qualified for a FIFA World Cup, although they featured at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, failing to advance to the last 16 on both occasions.
As Slovenia and Sweden endured difficult campaigns, with each failing to win a qualification match, Group B was a direct battle between Switzerland and Kosovo.
The Swiss finished the six-game campaign 3 points ahead of the Kosovans, whose one loss came at the hands of the group winners.
The Kosovan squad feature ex- Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and Mallorca's Vedat Muriqi – his nation's all-time leading goalscorer – in a squad targeting a maiden major tournament appearance.
They have not yet faced the Welsh team.
Bosnia lost only one time in qualifying, and earned a points additional than the Welsh managed in their 8 games, but still finished 2 points behind of their group winners Austria.
They were a quarter of an hour away from securing a spot at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians meant the pair tied in the last game of qualifying and Ralf Rangnick's team won the group.
Wales have not managed to beat the Bosnian side in 4 attempts but did have a unforgettable defeat against Zmajevi as they qualified for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman even after losing.
As his country's all-time leading scorer and record appearance player, ex- Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, now at Fiorentina, is unquestionably Bosnia-Herzegovina's standout player.
The veteran was his team's top scorer in the qualifiers with 5 goals.
And finally, we have Ireland.
After taken only a single point from their first 3 matches, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side stormed into the play-offs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.
Troy Parrott scored both goals against the 2016 European Championship winners Portugal before bagging a hat-trick – with the final goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Irish surprised Hungary to secure runner-up spot in Group F in dramatic fashion.
Talisman Seamus Coleman had a crucial role in his side's resurgence while Premier League keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the starting jersey his to keep.
Ireland are winless in their last four encounters with the Welsh, defeated in 3 of those, although James McClean broke the hearts of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's team won a crucial World Cup qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.