đź”— Share this article Wales Prepared to Challenge Anyone in World Cup Playoff Draw The team has secured 8 of their last 16 matches under manager Craig Bellamy Wales' focus are squarely on the upcoming World Cup play-off fixture as they await discovering their semi-final and potential final rivals. After ended as runners-up in their qualification pool following a dominant 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their biggest success since 1978 – the side will host the semifinal match on home soil. They will play against either the Albanian side, Bosnia, Kosovo or Ireland in that fixture on 26 March. Former Wales forward Rob Earnshaw feels the Dragons will welcome a match against any team following their most recent result 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 stated. "Many people were saying recently, 'do we actually want Ireland as it's that local feel?'. In my view many supporters were hesitant. But for me, that could be fantastic. "So it's one of those, yes, we're ready for the Kosovans or the Bosnians and Albania are decent and Ireland, naturally, they are a strong team so they'll be tough. "However the sense is that we're prepared for anybody at the moment and we're confident, and much of that is down to Craig Bellamy." Possible Playoff Semifinal Opponents Evaluated The Welsh squad sit 34th in the FIFA standings, with the Albanian team sixty-first, Republic of Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and Kosovo eighty-fourth. Albania enjoyed a solid qualifying run, with their sole losses coming at the hands of their group winners England, who claimed full points without conceding a solitary goal. Burnley's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are among the Red and Blacks's recognizable players, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who led their goal chart in qualifying with 3 goals. Notably, Albania have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup, although they featured at the 2016 European Championship and Euro 2024, failing to reach the last 16 on each times. As Slovenia and Sweden endured difficult campaigns, with each failing to win a qualifying match, their group was a straight shootout between Switzerland and Kosovo. The Switzerland finished the six-game campaign 3 points ahead of Kosovo, whose one defeat came at the hands of the pool winners. Kosovo feature former Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his country's all-time leading goalscorer – in a squad targeting a first major tournament appearance. They have not yet faced the Welsh team. Bosnia were defeated just once in qualifying, and earned a point additional than the Welsh achieved in their eight games, but still ended 2 points adrift of their group winners Austria. They were a quarter of an hour away from securing a place at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's equaliser for the Austrians meant the teams tied in the last game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the group. Wales have failed to defeat the Bosnian side in four attempts but experienced a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they qualified for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman even after losing. As his country's historic top goalscorer and most-capped player, former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is unquestionably Bosnia-Herzegovina's key player. The veteran was his squad's top scorer in qualifying with five goals. And finally, we have Ireland. After taken only a single point from their first three qualifiers, Heimir HallgrĂmsson's side stormed into the playoffs 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 take runner-up spot in their group in dramatic style. Key player Seamus Coleman played a crucial role in his side's revival while Brentford keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the starting position his own. Ireland are without a win in their past 4 encounters with Wales, defeated in 3 of these, though James McClean shattered the hearts of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's men won a decisive World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.