Wales Prepared to Challenge Whichever Opponent in FIFA World Cup Play-off Fixture
The team has won 8 of their recent 16 matches with manager Craig Bellamy
The team's focus are firmly on the upcoming World Cup playoff fixture as they await discovering their semifinal and possible final rivals.
After finished second in their qualifying group following a commanding 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their largest success since 1978 – Wales will host the semi-final match on home soil.
They will play against either Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo or Republic of Ireland in that fixture on 26 March.
Ex- Wales forward Rob Earnshaw feels the Welsh squad will relish a match against whichever team following their latest result 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, 'should we actually want Ireland as it's that local feel?'. I think many people didn't. But for me, that would be fantastic.
"It's that type of situation, yes, we'll take the Kosovans or the Bosnians and Albania are decent and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they are a strong team so it will be difficult.
"But you just feel that we're prepared for anyone right now and we're confident, and a lot of that is because of Craig Bellamy."
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The Welsh squad are placed thirty-fourth in the world standings, with Albania 61st, Republic of Ireland 62nd, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and the Kosovan side eighty-fourth.
The Albanian national team had a impressive qualification campaign, with their sole losses coming at the hands of Group K winners England, who secured full points without allowing a single goal.
The Premier League's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Red and Blacks's more notable names, though it was former Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who topped their goal chart in qualifying with 3 goals.
Notably, the Albanians have not yet earned a spot for a World Cup, though they featured at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, failing to advance to the knockout stages on both times.
As Slovenia and Sweden endured torrid runs, with both not managing to win a qualification match, their group was a straight shootout between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.
The Swiss ended the six-game campaign 3 points clear of Kosovo, whose one defeat came at the hands of the group winners.
Kosovo include former Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his nation's historic leading goalscorer – in a team aiming for a first international competition appearance.
They have not yet 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 behind of Group H winners Austria.
They were a quarter of an hour away from securing a place at the World Cup, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians ensured the teams tied in the last game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the group.
The Welsh have not managed to defeat the Bosnian side in 4 attempts but did have a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they earned qualification for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.
Being his country's historic leading scorer and most-capped player, former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia-Herzegovina's standout player.
The 39-year-old was his squad's top scorer in qualifying with five goals.
Lastly, we have Ireland.
Having secured just one point from their first three matches, Heimir HallgrĂmsson'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 triple – with the final goal arriving in the 96th minute – as the Republic of Ireland surprised Hungary to take runner-up spot in their group in dramatic fashion.
Talisman Seamus Coleman had a crucial role in his team's resurgence while Premier League keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the number one jersey his to keep.
Ireland are winless in their past 4 encounters with the Welsh, losing three of these, though James McClean broke the hopes of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's team won a crucial World Cup qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.
