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Wales' sights are firmly on Thursday's World Cup play-off fixture as they prepare for discovering their semifinal and possible final challengers.

Having finished second in their qualifying pool following a decisive 7-1 victory over North Macedonia – their largest win since 1978 – the side will host the semifinal encounter on their own turf.

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

Former Wales striker Rob Earnshaw feels the Welsh squad will relish a tie against any team after their latest performance at Cardiff City Stadium.

"I know Craig Bellamy, I played with him and his mindset is 'bring on anyone, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw commented.

"A lot of supporters were wondering recently, 'do we actually want Ireland as it's that local feel?'. I think many people didn't. But personally, that could be incredible.

"It's that type of situation, yes, we'll take Kosovo or Bosnia and Albania are decent and Ireland, of course, they're a capable team so they'll be tough.

"However the sense is that we're prepared for anyone at the moment and it doesn't matter, and a lot of that is because of Craig Bellamy."

Possible Play-off Semi-final Opponents Assessed

The Welsh squad sit thirty-fourth in the world standings, with Albania sixty-first, Republic of Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and the Kosovan side eighty-fourth.

Albania enjoyed a strong qualification run, with their only defeats coming at the hands of Group K winners England, who secured maximum points without allowing a solitary goal.

Burnley's Armando Broja and the Serie A side's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Albanian squad's recognizable names, although it was former Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who topped their scoring tally in the qualifiers with three goals.

It is worth noting, the Albanians have not yet qualified for a FIFA World Cup, although they featured at the 2016 European Championship and the 2024 Euros, failing to advance to the knockout stages on each times.

While Slovenia and Sweden endured poor runs, with each not managing to win a qualification match, Group B was a direct battle between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.

The Switzerland ended the six-match qualifiers 3 points ahead of Kosovo, whose one defeat came at the hands of the group winners.

Kosovo feature former Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his country's historic top scorer – in a team aiming for a first major tournament appearance.

They have never faced Wales.

Bosnia lost only one time in the qualifiers, and earned a point more than the Welsh managed in their 8 games, but still finished 2 points adrift of their group winners Austria.

They were a quarter of an hour away from clinching a spot at the World Cup, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians ensured the teams drew in the last game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team won the group.

Wales have not managed to defeat the Bosnian side in four matches but experienced a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they qualified for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after the defeat.

Being his country's all-time top goalscorer and most-capped player, former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, now at Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia-Herzegovina's standout player.

The veteran was his team's top scorer in the qualifiers with five goals.

Lastly, we have Republic of Ireland.

After taken just one point from their opening 3 qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side surged into the play-offs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.

Troy Parrott netted the two goals against the 2016 European Championship winners Portugal before scoring a triple – with the final goal arriving in the 96th minute – as the Irish surprised Hungary to secure runner-up place in their group in thrilling style.

Talisman Seamus Coleman played a crucial role in his side's revival while Premier League keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has made the starting jersey his own.

The Republic of Ireland are winless in their last 4 meetings with Wales, losing three 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.