🔗 Share this article

Wales' sights are firmly on the upcoming World Cup playoff fixture as they prepare for learning their semifinal and potential final rivals.

After finished second in their qualification pool thanks to a commanding 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their biggest win since 1978 – the side will play the semifinal encounter on home soil.

They will play against either Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo or Republic of Ireland in that match on 26 March.

Ex- Wales striker Rob Earnshaw thinks the Dragons will relish a tie against whichever team following their latest performance at Cardiff City Stadium.

"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, I played with him and his mindset is 'bring on whoever, we're ready'," Earnshaw said.

"A lot of supporters were saying last night, 'should we actually want Republic of Ireland as it's that derby feel?'. I think a number of people didn't. But personally, that could be fantastic.

"So it's one of those, yes, we're ready for the Kosovans or Bosnia and Albania are not bad and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they're a strong team so it will be difficult.

"But the sense is that we'll take anyone right now and it doesn't matter, and much of that is down to Craig Bellamy."

Potential Play-off Semi-final Opponents Assessed

The Welsh squad are placed 34th in the FIFA rankings, with the Albanian team sixty-first, Ireland 62nd, Bosnia 75th and the Kosovan side 84th.

Albania enjoyed a solid qualifying run, with their sole losses coming at the hands of their group winners England, who claimed full points without allowing a solitary goal.

The Premier League's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are among the Red and Blacks's recognizable names, although it was former Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who led their scoring tally in qualifying with three goals.

It is worth noting, Albania have not yet earned a spot for a World Cup, although they featured at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, failing to reach the last 16 on both occasions.

While Slovenia and Sweden had poor campaigns, with each failing to win a qualification match, their group was a direct battle between Switzerland and Kosovo.

The Swiss ended the six-match qualifiers three points ahead of Kosovo, whose single defeat was at the hands of the group winners.

The Kosovan squad feature former Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and Mallorca's Vedat Muriqi – his country's historic top scorer – in a team targeting a maiden major tournament appearance.

They have never played the Welsh team.

Bosnia-Herzegovina lost only one time in the qualifiers, and earned a point more than Wales achieved in their eight games, but still finished 2 points adrift of their group winners Austria.

They were 13 minutes away from clinching a place at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's equaliser for the Austrians ensured the teams tied in the final game of qualifying and Ralf Rangnick's team won the pool.

Wales have failed to beat the Bosnians in 4 attempts but did have a unforgettable defeat against Zmajevi as they earned qualification for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.

As his nation's all-time top goalscorer and record appearance player, ex- Manchester City forward Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia's standout player.

The 39-year-old was his team's leading goalscorer in the qualifiers with five goals.

Lastly, we have Republic of Ireland.

Having secured just one point from their first 3 qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side stormed into the play-offs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.

Troy Parrott netted the two goals against Euro 2016 winners Portugal before scoring a hat-trick – with the final goal arriving in the 96th minute – as the Republic of Ireland stunned Hungary to secure second spot in their group in dramatic style.

Talisman Seamus Coleman played a vital role in his team's resurgence while Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the number one position his to keep.

Ireland are without a win in their last 4 meetings with Wales, defeated in 3 of these, although James McClean shattered the hopes of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's men won a decisive World Cup qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.