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Wales' attention are squarely on the upcoming World Cup play-off fixture as they await discovering their semifinal and possible final opponents.

Having ended as runners-up in their qualifying group following a commanding 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their largest success since 1978 – the side will host the semi-final encounter on their own turf.

They will play against either Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Kosovan team or Ireland in that match on 26 March.

Ex- Wales striker Rob Earnshaw believes the Welsh squad will relish a tie against whichever team after their latest performance at Cardiff City Stadium.

"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, we were teammates with him and his approach is 'give us anyone, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw stated.

"A lot of people were asking last night, 'do we actually want Republic of Ireland as it's that local feel?'. I think a number of supporters were hesitant. But personally, that could be incredible.

"It's that type of situation, indeed, we're ready for the Kosovans or Bosnia and Albania are competitive and Ireland, naturally, they're a very good team so they'll be tough.

"However the sense is that we'll take anyone at the moment and it doesn't matter, and much of that is down to Craig Bellamy."

Potential Play-off Semi-final Opponents Evaluated

Wales sit 34th in the world standings, with Albania 61st, Ireland 62nd, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and Kosovo eighty-fourth.

Albania had a solid qualifying run, with their sole defeats coming at the hands of Group K winners England, who secured full points without conceding a solitary goal.

Burnley's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Albanian squad's recognizable players, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who led their scoring chart in the qualifiers with three goals.

Importantly, Albania have never earned a spot for a FIFA World Cup, although they featured at Euro 2016 and the 2024 Euros, failing to reach the last 16 on each occasions.

While Slovenia and Sweden had torrid campaigns, with each not managing to win a qualifying match, Group B was a direct battle between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.

The Swiss finished the six-game campaign three points ahead of Kosovo, whose one defeat came at the hands of the group winners.

Kosovo feature ex- Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his nation's all-time leading goalscorer – in a squad aiming for a maiden international competition appearance.

They have never faced Wales.

Bosnia-Herzegovina were defeated only one time in the qualifiers, and claimed a point more than the Welsh achieved in their 8 games, but still finished two points adrift of Group H winners Austria.

They were a quarter of an hour away from securing a spot at the finals, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians ensured the teams drew in the last game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the pool.

The Welsh have failed to defeat the Bosnian side in four attempts but experienced a unforgettable defeat against Zmajevi as they earned qualification for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.

As his country's all-time leading scorer and record appearance player, former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is unquestionably Bosnia's standout player.

The veteran was his team's leading goalscorer in qualifying with 5 goals.

And finally, we have Republic of Ireland.

Having taken only a single point from their opening three matches, 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 Euro 2016 winners Portugal before bagging a triple – with the final goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Republic of Ireland surprised Hungary to secure runner-up place in their group in thrilling style.

Talisman Seamus Coleman had a vital role in his team's resurgence while Brentford keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the starting jersey his own.

The Republic of Ireland are without a win in their last four meetings with Wales, losing three of these, though James McClean shattered the hearts of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's team won a decisive World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.