Wales and Poland face off tonight in a crucial meeting that will determine which of the two countries features in this year’s Euro 2024.
The teams are one match away from a place in the tournament and will meet in a qualifying play-off final at the Cardiff City Stadium, where Wales should be the favorites to triumph. They have home advantage and although they lack the star power of Robert Lewandowski, who will certainly feature for Poland, they should have enough power to reach a third consecutive European Championship in front of the Red Wall.
Both sides advanced to the semi-finals of the play-offs, with Wales beating Finland 4–1 and Poland beating Estonia 5–1. Yet Poles are not robbers, even if they are vulnerable. The visitors don’t usually travel well but have fond memories of facing Wales with their 1-0 win at this stadium in September 2022, one of only two wins away from home since October 2020.
The winner of the draw in Cardiff will advance to this summer’s tournament, joining the Netherlands, Austria and France in Group D.
Follow all the action below and receive the latest odds and tips for the match here:
Wales vs Poland LIVE
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Wales host Poland in the Euro 2024 play-off final with kick-off at 7.45pm, live on Viaplay Sports 2
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The winner will secure a place at this summer’s tournament in Germany
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The result could have implications for Rob Page’s tenure as Wales boss
Wales – Poland
Discussions between Wales and Poland
17:22 , Mike Jones
Rewriting history
Wales need to rewrite history to reach Euro 2024 as their record against Poland is abysmal. Played 10, lost seven, drew two and only won one.
That 2-0 win came in their first game in March 1973, when Leighton James and Trevor Hockey scored in a World Cup qualifier.
Things have gone downhill for Wales since then, with Poland winning the last six, including a Nations League double header in 2022. Poland produced a late sucker punch to win 2-1 in Wroclaw and Karol Swiderski settled a tight match in Cardiff three months later.
Discussions between Wales and Poland
17:11 , Mike Jones
Red hot Robert
With Gareth Bale retiring from the golf course, Poland can lay claim to the play-off final’s only superstar: Robert Lewandowski.
The Barcelona striker may now be 35, but he still finds the net with incredible regularity. Lewandowski has scored seven goals in his last nine games at Barcelona and 23 for club and country this season.
With 82 goals in Poland, only Romelu Lukaku (83), Ferenc Puskas (84) and Cristiano Ronaldo (128) have scored more in international men’s football in Europe.
Stopping Lewandowski will be crucial for Wales.
Discussions between Wales and Poland
5:00 PM , Mike Jones
Ramsey’s role has been reduced
Captain Aaron Ramsey dominated much of the talk ahead of Finland as the Cardiff midfielder was the subject of a row between club and country.
However, the truth was that the 33-year-old was never going to start after an injury-affected season, and in that case Ramsey didn’t get on the field at all.
He will be back on the bench against Poland and while he remains a significant influence in the dressing room, Page is likely to only use him in an emergency.
Discussions between Wales and Poland
4:50 PM , Mike Jones
On the same page
Wales boss Rob Page pulled off a surprise in his line-up in the semi-final against Finland. He opted to keep Kieffer Moore on the bench and opted for a three-man attacking force of Brennan Johnson, David Brooks and Harry Wilson.
It was a bold decision with goalkeeper Moore in such good form at Ipswich. But Brooks and Johnson scored in an emphatic 4-1 win and Wilson was a constant threat with the Wales attack all on the same page.
Daniel James also scored and impressed coming off the bench, and Page now faces another tough selection.
Discussions between Wales and Poland
16:39 , Mike Jones
Golden Age
Qualification for a third consecutive European Championship and a fourth major tournament in five would extend Wales’ golden era.
While that record would be expected by many countries, it would be a huge achievement for a country of just over three million inhabitants that did not reach a major tournament between 1958 and 2016.
It would also be achieved without their retired former captain Gareth Bale, who did so much to get them over the line in previous qualifying campaigns.
Wales ‘prepared for tough challenge’ of the Euro 2024 play-off final against Poland
16:28 , Mike Jones
Rob Page insists Wales are “prepared for a tough challenge” as they look to book their place at Euro 2024.
The Dragons host Poland in a play-off final at the Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday, March 26, with a place in Germany at stake this summer.
A win would see the country play in a third consecutive European Championship and a fourth major tournament of five after qualifying for the 2022 World Cup.
Wales to get the job done?
4:15 PM , Mike Jones
This summer’s European Championship will feature an expanded 24-team format, with Nations League-supported play-offs allowing more teams to qualify for the tournament proper.
Should Wales win tonight it would mean more teams have qualified for the competition from their original five-team qualifying group than failed.
If we get the job done against Poland and reach Euro 2024, it will mark a remarkable turnaround for Wales, who looked to have squandered their chances after back-to-back defeats to Armenia and Turkey last summer.
The home loss to Armenia was damaging and raised questions about the effectiveness of manager Rob Page, which cannot be answered until tonight’s result is known.
Can Wales reach Euro 2024?
16:03 , Mike Jones
Wales are currently in their most successful era and are aiming for a third consecutive European Championship.
“It would be a great achievement for us to qualify,” said manager Rob Page. “Anytime you go through a campaign you’re always going to hit bumps in the road, especially in the transition phase, and we had that in the summer too.
“What I like is the response we’ve had since then. To go unbeaten in seven games and play the way we did. I really, really like it.
“I would be an extremely proud man if we get the job done.”
Wales vs Poland prediction
15:48 , Mike Jones
Wales would need to beat Poland in a tight and exciting encounter to secure their place at Euro 2024. Expect goals, tears and drama from Cardiff tonight.
Wales 2-1 Poland.
Wales vs Poland team news and predicted line-ups
15:36 , Mike Jones
Wales are believed to have no new fitness concerns following the convincing win over Finland and could well remain a similar side. Aaron Ramsey is unlikely to be promoted to the starting XI following a recent return from injury.
Conversely, Poland saw both Przemyslaw Frankowski and Matty Cash leave with injuries during their win against Estonia. Cash has been ruled out of the play-off final and Bartosz Bereszynski may be forced to replace on the right flank.
Predicted lineups
Wales XI: district; Davies, Mepham, Rodon; Roberts, Ampadu, J. James, Williams; Brooks, Wilson; Johnson.
Poland XI: Szczesny; Kiwior, Bednarek, Dawidowicz; Bereszynski, Zielinski, Slisz, Piotrowski, Zalewski; Swiderski, Lewandowski.
How to watch Wales vs Poland
15:24 , Mike Jones
Wales vs Poland will kick off at Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday 26 March at 7.45pm GMT.
Viewers in the UK can watch the match live on Viaplay Sports 2, with coverage from 7.35pm GMT, or via Welsh channel S4C from 7.20pm. A live stream will be available on the Viaplay Sports website and on BBC iPlayer.
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Good evening!
14:48 , Mike Jones
Welcome everyone That of the Independents coverage of the Euro 2024 qualifier final tonight as Wales look to take the final step towards this summer’s European Championship tournament.
After making it through the semi-finals with a convincing 4-1 win over Finland, Rob Page’s men now face the difficult task of beating Poland in this play-off final.
They will be boosted by home advantage and the Red Wall of Welsh fans will bring an electric atmosphere to the Cardiff City Stadium, which should give the home side a boost.
This is an all or nothing meeting. Win and a place at the Euros is up for grabs, lose and Wales are out of the tournament before it even starts.
The pressure is on manager Rob Page, whose team is expected to triumph tonight. Anything less and the boss may lose his job. Can Wales perform in this crucial match with the spotlight on them and reach Euro 2024?
We’ll have all the updates, team news and line-ups all evening, so stick around as we build up to kick off at 7.45pm.