Craig Bellamy's squad Ready to Challenge Anyone in World Cup Playoff Fixture
Wales have won 8 of their recent sixteen matches under coach Craig Bellamy
Wales' focus are firmly on the upcoming World Cup play-off draw as they await discovering their semifinal and potential final opponents.
Having ended as runners-up in their qualification pool following a commanding 7-1 win over North Macedonia – their largest win since 1978 – Wales will host the semifinal encounter on their own turf.
They will face either Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo or Republic of Ireland in that fixture on 26 March.
Former Wales striker Rob Earnshaw believes the Welsh squad will relish a match against any opponent following their most recent performance at Cardiff City Stadium.
"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, we were teammates with him and his mindset is 'give us anyone, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw commented.
"A lot of supporters were asking last night, 'should we actually want Ireland because of that derby feel?'. In my view many supporters were hesitant. But for me, that could be fantastic.
"It's that type of situation, yes, we'll take the Kosovans or the Bosnians and Albania are not bad and Republic of Ireland, of course, they are a strong team so they'll be difficult.
"However you just feel that we'll take anyone at the moment and we're confident, and a lot of that is because of Craig Bellamy."
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Wales are placed 34th in the FIFA standings, with the Albanian team 61st, Republic of Ireland 62nd, Bosnia seventy-fifth and the Kosovan side eighty-fourth.
Albania enjoyed a impressive qualifying campaign, with their sole losses suffered at the hands of Group K winners England, who claimed maximum points without conceding a solitary goal.
Burnley's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Red and Blacks's prominent players, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who led their goal chart in the qualifiers with 3 goals.
It is worth noting, the Albanians have not yet earned a spot for a World Cup, though they featured at Euro 2016 and Euro 2024, failing to advance to the knockout stages on each times.
As Slovenia and Sweden had torrid runs, with each not managing to win a qualifying match, Group B was a direct battle between Switzerland and Kosovo.
The Switzerland ended the six-match campaign 3 points clear of the Kosovans, whose one loss was at the hands of the group winners.
Kosovo feature former Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and Mallorca's Vedat Muriqi – his country's all-time leading goalscorer – in a team targeting a maiden major tournament appearance.
They have not yet faced the Welsh team.
Bosnia lost only one time in the qualifiers, and earned a points more than the Welsh managed in their 8 games, but nonetheless finished two points behind of their group winners Austria.
They were 13 minutes away from securing a spot at the World Cup, but Michael Gregoritsch's equaliser for the Austrians ensured the pair drew in the final game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team won the pool.
Wales have failed to beat the Bosnian side in four attempts but experienced a unforgettable defeat against the Dragons as they earned qualification for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after losing.
Being his nation's historic top goalscorer and record appearance player, ex- Manchester City forward Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is unquestionably Bosnia's standout player.
The 39-year-old was his team's top scorer in the qualifiers with five goals.
Lastly, we have Ireland.
After taken only a single point from their first three matches, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side surged into the play-offs with back-to-back wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.
Troy Parrott scored both goals against Euro 2016 winners Portugal before scoring a hat-trick – with the third goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Irish surprised Hungary to take runner-up place in Group F in thrilling fashion.
Key player Seamus Coleman had a vital role in his side's resurgence while Premier League keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the number one jersey his to keep.
Ireland are without a win in their past four meetings with the Welsh, defeated in 3 of these, though James McClean shattered the hopes of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's men won a crucial World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.