John Hartson
Former Wales striker

Image source, pa

"Gareth Bale will be delighted, he will put this right up there with his achievements because he is a proud Welshman. He is a freak of nature, a superstar, and he has taken to La Liga like a duck to water but it will still mean everything to him.

"The lads think the world of him. He’s a great lad, he doesn’t come with an entourage, and is down to earth like all the lads are. We are a down to earth nation."    

Just had a quick flick through the Wales archive at the qualifying record. It's consistent...

2012 – did not qualify

2008 – did not qualify

2004 – did not qualify

2000 – did not qualify

1996 – did not qualify

1992 – did not qualify

1988 – did not qualify

1984 – did not qualify

1980 – did not qualify

1976 – did not qualify

1972 – did not qualify

1968 – did not qualify

1964 – did not qualify

1960 – did not participate  

BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra

You can listen to full match commentary from Zenica on 5 live sports extra this evening - starting at 19:40 BST.

Listen online, on a DAB radio or in this page at the top. 

John Hartson
Former Wales striker

"Gareth Bale is one of the best players in the world and we embrace him but he doesn’t play any part in keeping the six clean sheets Wales have achieved in eight games.

"He doesn’t go in and attack the ball in Wales’ own box, he doesn’t stick his head in where the studs are flying defensively like Ashley Williams, Chris Gunter, James Collins or James Chester have done."

Image source, .

Italy have just booked their place at next summer's Euro 2016 finals by beating Azerbaijan 3-1.

Norway, who have just beaten Malta 2-0, will join them if Croatia fail to beat Bulgaria later this evening (19:45 BST kick-off)

Croatia can't catch Italy but they could still leapfrog Norway, who play Italy in their last game on Tuesday, when Croatia take on Malta.

Third in the group guarantees a spot in the play-offs, remember. And of all nine third-placed teams across the groups, the one with the most points gets an automatic qualifying spot too.  

How are we all feeling then?

Wales are unbeaten in 10 competitive games as they tiptoe towards that historic qualification - and now it's so close you can almost taste it.

Everyone feeling OK? Settled in for a big night? Any concerns? What's the gameplan?

Let us know. You can text us on 81111 (UK Only with a name on it) or tweet us at #bbcfootball., external

Image source, .

Wales can qualify for their first international tournament since 1958 with a draw against Bosnia-Herzegovina tonight. 

Belgium can join Chris Coleman's side if they beat Andorra.

Israel, who play Cyprus, can still qualify automatically if Wales and/or Belgium slip up in their final two games. 

Bosnia and Cyprus could both still overtake Israel to finish third and grab a play-off place. 

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales

Zenica is about an hour away from the capital city Sarajevo, where some ticketless Wales fans will be watching the game - they were only allocated 750 at the 15,000-capacity stadium.

Bosnian journalists expect a hostile atmosphere at this compact ground, where the hosts will be hoping to put Welsh celebrations on hold as well as chasing a win to keep their own play-off hopes alive.

Image source, .

The big story in Group A is the Netherlands struggling to qualify.  

Iceland and Czech Republic have already qualified automatically.

That leaves Turkey and Netherlands to compete for third place. The Dutch have just beaten Kazakhstan to leapfrog Turkey, who play in the Czech Republic at 19:45 BST...

Third place guarantees a spot in the play-offs, remember. And of all nine third-placed teams across the groups, the one with the most points gets an automatic qualifying spot too.  

It is a huge day for Welsh sport today - and the first leg has not gone to plan.

Australia weathered a Welsh storm to win World Cup Pool A with a 15-6 victory at Twickenham.

Wales paid a high price for failing to make their extra numbers count when the Wallabies were reduced to 13 men for seven minutes in the second half.

Fly-half Bernard Foley kicked all Australia's points, with Dan Bigger twice on target for Wales.

Australia now face Scotland in the quarter-final on 18 October, with Wales against South Africa the day before.

Over to you boys in Bosnia...

John Hartson
Former Wales striker

Image source, Reuters

"I had 10 years of wearing the number nine shirt and I was the proudest man ever playing for Wales because I followed in the footsteps of John Charles, Trevor Ford, Ian Rush, Mark Hughes and Dean Saunders. I’ll feel extremely proud that this group of players have achieved something that we failed to achieve.

"We had our chances but we failed as national footballers. We never achieved the holy grail, but this group has. I’m not envious at all, I’ve not got an ego and don’t live with any bitterness. I shouldn’t be here after I recovered from cancer six years ago when I was a dead man on the slab at one stage. We will be immensely proud in France. We will have our Welsh scarves around our necks, and we will sit in with the fans or doing media commitments."

Italy have now qualified for Euro 2016 after that win, while the Netherlands move up into the third place in Group A. Their play-off hopes remain alive. 

Four matches kicked off at 17:00 BST this afternoon - here's how they ended up:

Azerbaijan 1-3 Italy

Norway 2-0 Malta

Iceland 2-2 Latvia

Kazakhstan 1-2 Netherlands

Image source, Everton

A quick change of pace for a moment now to mention the work being done at Everton as part of World Mental Health Day,, external which is today. 

They've made a short but very powerful film about one Lee Johnson, who spent 18 years of his life sleeping rough on the streets of Liverpool, and now works helping people overcome the same issues he experienced.

You can watch it over here., external

Image source, Getty Images

It may be over 57 years since Wales last played in a major tournament, but we all know the guy who scored the decisive goal.

Pele - heard of him? - bagged the only goal as Brazil knocked Wales out of the 1958 World Cup quarter-final in Stockholm.

Tonight Wales can secure their place at the Euro 2016 finals and end that 57-year wait...

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales

Image source, BBC Sport

With Euro 2016 qualification just a point away, this is one of the most important nights in Welsh football history.

But judging by the home fans’ preparations for the game, it seems a fairly big deal for Bosnia-Herzegovina as well.

There have been flares, drums and loud chanting outside the Bilino Polje Stadium in Zenica, and that’s still with almost an hour to go before kick-off.

Image source, BBC Sport

Here's the Wales line-up tonight, expect Gareth Bale to have a free role behind Hal Robson-Kanu.

Bosnia are without former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, who is only fit enough for a spot on the bench. Chelsea goalkeeper Asmir Begovic is captain. 

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales

Welsh football history has been defined by failure; sometimes abject, often agonisingly narrow.

There have been several near misses. Paul Bodin's penalty against Romania in 1993 hit the bar and saw Wales fall just short of the 1994 World Cup, while a play-off defeat at home to Russia a decade later cost them a place at Euro 2004.

It is those false dawns which would make qualifying for Euro 2016 all the sweeter, a momentous celebration for generations starved of success.