WELSH football enters uncharted waters tonight as the nation prepares for its first ever semi-final at a major tournament.

Gareth Bale and teammates have eclipsed the achievements of John Charles’ 1958 side and John Toshack’s 1976 vintage.

And, having outfought and eventually outclassed the highly fancied Belgians in the quarter-finals, there is every possibility that they can overcome what looks a poor Portugal side and reach the Euro 2016 final.

Chris Coleman’s men are 90 minutes away from the final – or possibly 120 minutes given Portugal’s run to this stage.

Come Sunday night they could and probably should be lining up at the Stade de France against the hosts or world champions Germany with the eyes of the world on them.

It’s an amazing thought and one that very few would have even dreamed of just a few weeks ago.

But Wales’ incredible success in this tournament and in the qualifying campaign to get to France has been based very much on taking each game as it comes.

And they don’t come much bigger than the semi-final of the European Championships.

Speaking to the players and management this week and throughout the last few weeks it is clear that there is no danger of them taking anything for granted tonight or letting their thoughts drift towards the final.

“My dream now is to win the next match, nothing more,” said Bale earlier this week.

“Obviously we think about winning the whole thing – everyone does at the start of the tournament.

“It’s a dream to win the tournament but, for us now, our next stop is to dream about winning the next game, the semi-final against Portugal.

“As I said before, we really can’t look further than that game. We need to focus and do everything we can to win the game.”

Bale is a two-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid but his love for Wales is obvious and he says this experience is the greatest honour of his career so far.

"It's difficult to describe my greatest moment but for sure it's right up there,” he said.

“And it's the greatest honour I've had. The biggest honour you can have is to play for your country and to be part of history now, doing something the country has never been involved in is an amazing achievement in itself.

"We think it's our time. We don't want it to end here. We want to continue the journey and keep on fighting. Hopefully we can make more history."

Portugal, led by Bale’s Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, will be favourites and rightly so.

But that will be based on their football pedigree and experience rather than how they’ve performed in France.

Portugal have made six previous semi-finals – two in the World Cup and four in the Euros – and have so far won only one.

They made the final of Euro 2004 – a tournament they hosted – only to see Greece lift the trophy in one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport.

They have a history of failing when it really matters on the biggest stage but for Wales this is all new and there is no fear whatsoever.

“We are going to go out and enjoy the occasion,” added Bale.

“We are not going to fear anything, we are not going to freeze. We'll enjoy ourselves and play the best football we can and hopefully that's good enough for us."

And if they do that – like they did against Russia and Belgium – then it really is hard to see Wales losing tonight.

The only cloud on the horizon is the suspensions for Aaron Ramsey and Ben Davies after both picked up their second yellow card of the tournament in the quarter-final.

“It’s horrible for them,” said Bale. “You feel for them and I'm sure deep down they'll be hurt but they are not showing it.

“They are doing everything to get behind the team.

“It's given us even more motivation for us to win the semi-final and so they can play again.

“We are not doing it just for the nation and the badge now, we are doing it for them as well."

Coleman is keeping his cards close to his chest over who he will pick to replace the pair.

Newport’s James Collins could come in for Davies at the back – although Coleman may just favour bringing in Jazz Richards instead, with Chris Gunter shifting into the back three.

In midfield Ramsey, who has been one of the stars of the tournament, will be a big loss.

Coleman may opt for a more defensive option in David Edwards or Andy King but he will probably recall Jonny Williams who impressed against Slovakia in the group.

“I have no worries about them whatsoever,” said the Wales boss.

“They know the drill, their jobs, what's required. They just need the same attitude as anyone else. Go and enjoy it, get on the pitch. Let's see how they fare. I have every confidence in them.”

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