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Wales' focus are squarely on Thursday's World Cup playoff draw as they prepare for learning their semi-final and potential final challengers.

Having ended second in their qualification group thanks to a decisive 7-1 triumph over North Macedonia – their largest win since 1978 – the side 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 thinks the Welsh squad will relish a tie against whichever opponent after their most recent performance at Cardiff City Stadium.

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

"Many supporters were saying recently, 'should we actually want Ireland because of that derby feel?'. I think a number of people were hesitant. But for me, that would be incredible.

"It's that type of situation, indeed, we'll take Kosovo or Bosnia and the Albanians are competitive and Republic of Ireland, naturally, they are a capable team so they'll be tough.

"But you just feel that we're prepared for anybody at the moment and we're confident, and a lot of that is because of Craig Bellamy."

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The Welsh squad are placed 34th in the FIFA rankings, with the Albanian team 61st, Ireland sixty-second, Bosnia seventy-fifth and the Kosovan side 84th.

The Albanian national team had a strong qualification campaign, with their only losses coming at the hands of their group winners England, who claimed maximum points without allowing a solitary goal.

Burnley's Armando Broja and Lazio's Elseid Hysaj are part of the Red and Blacks's prominent players, although it was ex- Inter Milan, Barcelona and Watford forward Rey Manaj who topped their scoring chart in qualifying with three goals.

It is worth noting, Albania have not yet earned a spot for a World Cup, although they featured at the 2016 European Championship and the 2024 Euros, failing to advance to the last 16 on both occasions.

As Slovenia and Sweden endured difficult runs, with each not managing to win a qualification match, Group B was a straight shootout between Switzerland and Kosovo.

The Switzerland finished the six-game qualifiers 3 points ahead of Kosovo, whose one defeat was at the hands of the pool winners.

Kosovo feature ex- Manchester City keeper Arijanet Muric and La Liga's Vedat Muriqi – his country's historic top scorer – in a squad 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 claimed a points more than the Welsh achieved in their eight games, but still finished 2 points behind of Group H winners Austria.

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

The Welsh have failed to beat the Bosnians in four attempts but experienced a unforgettable loss against the Dragons as they earned qualification for the 2016 European Championship under Chris Coleman despite the defeat.

Being his country's historic top goalscorer and most-capped player, former Manchester City forward Edin Dzeko, now at Fiorentina, is undoubtedly Bosnia-Herzegovina's key player.

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

Lastly, we have Republic of Ireland.

After secured just one point from their first three qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrímsson's side stormed into the play-offs with successive wins against Armenia, Portugal and Hungary.

Troy Parrott netted both goals against Euro 2016 winners Portugal before scoring a hat-trick – with the third goal coming in the 96th minute – as the Irish stunned Hungary to take runner-up spot in Group F in dramatic style.

Key player Seamus Coleman played a vital role in his side's revival while Premier League goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has secured the number one position his own.

The Republic of Ireland are without a win in their last four meetings with the Welsh, losing three of these, although James McClean broke the hopes of the Welsh fans as Martin O'Neill's men won a crucial World Cup qualifying match at Cardiff City Stadium in 2017.