Craig Bellamy's squad Prepared to Take on Whichever Opponent in World Cup Qualifying Draw
The team has won eight of their previous sixteen matches under manager Craig Bellamy
Wales' attention are firmly on the upcoming World Cup playoff draw as they prepare for discovering their semi-final and potential final opponents.
After finished as runners-up in their qualifying pool following a commanding 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their biggest success since 1978 – the side will play the semifinal encounter on home soil.
They will meet either the Albanian side, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo or Republic of Ireland in that fixture on 26 March.
Former Wales forward Rob Earnshaw thinks the Dragons will relish a tie against whichever opponent following their latest performance at Cardiff City Stadium.
"I know Craig Bellamy, I played with him and his approach is 'bring on anyone, we're ready'," Earnshaw commented.
"A lot of supporters were saying recently, 'do we really want Republic of Ireland as it's that derby feel?'. In my view many people were hesitant. But personally, that would be incredible.
"It's one of those, yes, we'll take Kosovo or the Bosnians and the Albanians are competitive and Republic of Ireland, of course, they are a capable team so they'll be tough.
"However the sense is that we're prepared for anybody at the moment and it doesn't matter, and much of that is because of Craig Bellamy."
Possible Play-off Semifinal Rivals Evaluated
The Welsh squad sit thirty-fourth in the FIFA rankings, with the Albanian team sixty-first, Republic of Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia-Herzegovina 75th and Kosovo 84th.
Albania had a strong qualifying run, with their sole losses suffered at the hands of their group winners England, who secured maximum points without allowing a single goal.
Burnley's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Albanian squad's prominent names, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford striker Rey Manaj who topped their goal chart in the qualifiers with 3 goals.
Importantly, Albania have never qualified for a World Cup, though they participated at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, not managing to advance to the knockout stages on each occasions.
As Slovenia and Sweden endured difficult campaigns, with both failing to win a qualifying match, their group was a straight shootout between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.
The Swiss ended the six-game qualifiers 3 points clear of the Kosovans, whose one defeat came at the hands of the group winners.
Kosovo feature ex- Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and Mallorca's Vedat Muriqi – his nation's all-time leading goalscorer – in a squad aiming for a first major tournament appearance.
They have never played Wales.
Bosnia-Herzegovina lost only one time in qualifying, and claimed a point additional than Wales achieved in their eight games, but still ended two points behind 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 teams tied in the last game of qualifying and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the group.
Wales have not managed to beat the Bosnians in 4 matches but experienced a unforgettable loss against Zmajevi as they earned qualification for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman despite the defeat.
As his country's historic leading scorer and record appearance player, ex- Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, now at Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia-Herzegovina's key player.
The 39-year-old was his team's top scorer in the qualifiers with 5 goals.
Lastly, we have Ireland.
After secured just one point from their first three qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side surged into the play-offs with back-to-back 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 surprised Hungary to secure runner-up place in Group F in thrilling fashion.
Key player Seamus Coleman played a crucial role in his side's revival while Brentford keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has made the starting position his own.
Ireland are without a win in their past four encounters with the Welsh, losing 3 of these, though James McClean broke the hearts of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's team won a crucial World Cup qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.
