Wales visit to Dublin and the land of his father will bring back fond memories for Welsh Manager Chris Coleman

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of FIFA (International Federation of Association Football). It is scheduled to take place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018. The final tournament will involve 32 national teams, which include 31 teams determined through qualifying competitions and the automatically qualified host team, Russia. 

There are two Celtic nations going through the qualification process, the Republic of Ireland national football team (Irish: Foireann peile náisiúnta Phoblacht na hÉireann) and the Wales national football team (Welsh: Tîm pêl-droed cenedlaethol Cymru) They are drawn together to compete in the qualification matches and will play this Friday in Ireland's capital city Dublin.

For the manager of Wales, Chris Coleman, the return to Dublin will be a visit to the birthplace of his late father. His father, Paddy, moved to the Welsh city of Swansea when he was aged 20. The River Liffey flows through Dublin and it is where, three years ago, Chris Coleman scattered the ashes of his late father. His father had requested that his ashes be sprinkled into the river along with a pint of Guinness, as is tradition.

In a recent article reported by BBC Wales, Chris Colemen said that on his visit to Dublin on Friday: "I will think about my father because it's his city and he would have wanted us to do well." However, as a proud Welshman, this will not distract him from his focus on the task ahead, which will be to secure a Welsh victory and a step nearer to qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals. Good luck to both teams.