Bosnia's Dzeko poses big World Cup threat

Wales head coach Craig Bellamy warns his players of threat of Bosnia veteran striker Edin Dzeko in their World Cup play-off this month.

Mar. 16, 2026 at 10:18am

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Wales head coach Craig Bellamy will warn his players to keep Bosnia-Herzegovina striker Edin Dzeko at arm's length when they meet in this month's World Cup play-off. Dzeko is his country's all-time leading goal-scorer with 72 goals from a Bosnia-record 146 caps. The former Manchester City and Roma forward - currently with Bundesliga 2 side Schalke - turns 40 just nine days before the semi-final, but the Wales boss says the veteran remains a huge threat.

Why it matters

The winner of the tie at Cardiff City Stadium on 26 March faces either Italy or Northern Ireland at home five days later for a place at this summer's World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States. Wales are aiming to qualify for back-to-back World Cup tournaments for the first time having previously played in the 1958 and 2022 finals.

The details

Dzeko scored five of 17 goals scored in Bosnia-Herzegovina's eight matches in their group that also included Austria, Romania, Cyprus and San Marino. Bellamy says Bosnia are physically very good, well-organized and good in both boxes, and don't need too many chances to score.

  • The semi-final match is on Thursday, 26 March.
  • Dzeko turns 40 just nine days before the semi-final match.

The players

Edin Dzeko

Bosnia-Herzegovina's all-time leading goal-scorer with 72 goals from a Bosnia-record 146 caps. The former Manchester City and Roma forward is currently with Bundesliga 2 side Schalke.

Craig Bellamy

The head coach of the Wales national team.

Sergej Barbarez

The head coach of the Bosnia-Herzegovina national team.

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What they’re saying

“Always. He was never that speed player but his link-up play and game intelligence is always going to be high. He's still playing at a good level and he's definitely a dangerous player.”

— Craig Bellamy, Wales head coach

“The idea for us would be to keep Bosnia away from our box because that's when he comes into his own. The more time he's outside the box the benefit it would be for us, so we have to keep him as high away from our goal as possible.”

— Craig Bellamy, Wales head coach

“Watching Bosnia has been a decent watch so far. It's going to be a tough game. Physically they are very good, well-organised [and] good in both boxes. They don't need too many chances to score.”

— Craig Bellamy, Wales head coach

What’s next

The winner of the tie at Cardiff City Stadium on 26 March faces either Italy or Northern Ireland at home five days later for a place at this summer's World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

The takeaway

This World Cup play-off match between Wales and Bosnia-Herzegovina features a veteran striker in Edin Dzeko who remains a formidable goal-scoring threat despite his advanced age. The winner will advance to face either Italy or Northern Ireland for a spot in the 2026 World Cup.