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Wales' sights are firmly on Thursday's World Cup play-off draw as they await learning their semi-final and potential final challengers.

Having finished second in their qualifying pool thanks to a dominant 7-1 triumph over North Macedonia – their biggest win since 1978 – Wales will host the semi-final encounter on their own turf.

They will play against either the Albanian side, Bosnia, Kosovo or Republic of Ireland in that match on 26 March.

Ex- Wales forward Rob Earnshaw feels the Welsh squad will relish a tie against any opponent following their latest result at Cardiff City Stadium.

"I'm familiar with Craig Bellamy, we were teammates with him and his mentality is 'bring on whoever, it doesn't matter'," Earnshaw commented.

"A lot of people were saying last night, 'do we really want Republic of Ireland because of that derby feel?'. In my view a number of supporters were hesitant. But personally, that would be fantastic.

"It's that type of situation, indeed, we're ready for Kosovo or Bosnia and the Albanians are decent and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they're a strong team so it will be challenging.

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

Potential Playoff Semifinal Opponents Evaluated

The Welsh squad sit thirty-fourth in the FIFA rankings, with the Albanian team sixty-first, Republic of Ireland 62nd, Bosnia-Herzegovina seventy-fifth and Kosovo eighty-fourth.

The Albanian national team enjoyed a impressive qualifying run, with their sole defeats suffered at the hands of their group winners England, who secured maximum points without conceding a solitary 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 players, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford striker Rey Manaj who led their scoring tally in qualifying with three goals.

It is worth noting, Albania have never earned a spot for a World Cup, although they participated at Euro 2016 and Euro 2024, failing to reach the knockout stages on both occasions.

As Slovenia and Sweden had torrid runs, with each failing to win a qualification match, their group was a straight shootout between Switzerland and the Kosovan team.

The Switzerland ended the six-game campaign 3 points ahead of Kosovo, whose single defeat was at the hands of the group winners.

The Kosovan squad feature ex- Manchester City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his country's historic top scorer – in a squad aiming for a maiden international competition appearance.

They have never played Wales.

Bosnia were defeated just once in the qualifiers, and claimed a points more than Wales achieved in their 8 games, but nonetheless finished 2 points adrift of Group H winners Austria.

They were 13 minutes away from securing a spot at the World Cup, but Michael Gregoritsch's leveler for the Austrians meant the teams tied in the final game of qualification and Ralf Rangnick's team topped the pool.

The Welsh have not managed to beat the Bosnians in four attempts but did have a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they earned qualification for Euro 2016 under Chris Coleman even after losing.

As his nation's historic leading scorer and most-capped player, former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, currently with Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia's star player.

The veteran was his squad's leading goalscorer in the qualifiers with five goals.

And finally, we have Republic of Ireland.

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

Troy Parrott scored the two goals against the 2016 European Championship winners Portugal before bagging a triple – with the third goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Irish surprised Hungary to secure runner-up place in Group F in dramatic fashion.

Talisman Seamus Coleman had a vital role in his team's resurgence while Premier League goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has made the number one jersey his own.

Ireland are without a win in their last four encounters with Wales, defeated in three of those, though James McClean shattered the hearts of the Red Wall as Martin O'Neill's team won a crucial World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.