Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina LIVE: Team news and updates ahead of World Cup play-off semi-final – UK Times

Ampadu. Wilson. Key midfield cogs for Wales tonight.

Warm-ups just ending at the Cardiff City Stadium…

“I think so, the Wales games really helped me as well,” he said. “To go away and play for your country puts you in a really good place.

On 7-1 win against North Macedonia: “It was a huge game, the hatr-trick was the cherry on the cake, it was perfect.”

“It’s a massive game, we’re ready for it,” he said. “The lads in that dressing room are ready to go.

“You want to play in these big games, it’s what you play football for. We’re a big squad with a lot of quality.”

“It would be very special to qualify,” he said.

“I think everyone as a kid grows up getting excited for a World Cup and wanting to play there. To have lived through that moment of achieving it gives you that feeling to want to do it again.

“But also, when we got there, we didn’t play as well as we could have. So it’s about wanting to put that right and making sure we deliver the performances. But like I said, we have to make sure we get through Thursday first.”

Fans await the Welsh team in the capital!

The visitors start with 40-year-old captain Edin Dzeko up front, with Sead Kolasinac (formerly of Arsenal) also in the starting XI.

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Vasilj; Dedic, Katic, Muharemovic, Kolasinac; Memic, Tahirovic, Bajraktarevic, Sunjic; Demirovic, Dzeko.

Subs: Hadzikic, Zlomislic, Mujakic, Radeljic, Celik, Basic, Gigovic, Hadziahmetovic, Bazdar, Tabakovic, Alajbegovic, Burnic.

Ethan Ampadu returns after suspension and replaces Josh Sheehan in midfield, with Jordan James replacing Liam Cullen from the line-up who beat North Macedonia in November.

Harry Wilson starts; Ampadu is skipper.

Wales: Darlow; Williams, Rodon, Lawlor, Dasilva; Ampadu, J. James; D. James, Brooks, Wilson, Johnson.

Subs: Ward, King, Cabango, Kpakio, Norrington-Davies, J. Colwill, Sheehan, Cullen, Thomas, Broadhead, Koumas, Harris.

In the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, the match will be broadcast live on BBC One Wales, BBC Two, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website.

Coverage starts at 7:10pm.

“It’s just normal for this group of players. It’s ingrained in them,” said Bellamy.

“It’s not for us to ride the rollercoaster. Everyone in these play-offs wants to get to the World Cup. We completely understand that and our fans will play a big part.

“Their experience in these games will play a big part, but us as coaching staff and the players, we have to be able to separate ourselves at times from it.

“We feed off it when we need to, because there will be moments where we definitely will, but let’s be clear, be calm.”

They are ranked 71st in the world (36 places below Wales). Edin Dzeko, with 146 caps and 72 goals in his back pocket, is their captain, aged 40.

Their most recent fixture was a 1-1 draw in Vienna in November, when an away win would have seen the Bosnians qualify. Austria equalised with 13 minutes to go, sealing their place in the US.