Wales and Northern Ireland will continue their preparations for Euro 2016 on Thursday when they face off at the Cardiff City Stadium.

The two British rivals have both endured lengthy absences from major international tournaments, but now find themselves on the home straight towards France this summer.

Wales

The long, long wait for Wales is nearly over, with less than three months to go before they grace a major international tournament for the first time in 58 years.

Not since the days of John Charles in the 1958 World Cup have Wales appeared on the biggest stages, with that adventure being cut short by a teenage Brazilian striker called Pele.

The likes of Ian Rush, Neville Southall, Gary Speed, Ryan Giggs and many more have missed out on such an occasion since, but the latest Welsh jewel - Gareth Bale - will not be so unfortunate.

The world's most expensive footballer will be key to his side's chances of getting out of a group that also includes England, Russia and Slovakia, but he will play no part in their Easter double-header having only recently returned from a calf injury.

Chris Coleman is also without Aaron Ramsey for the games against Northern Ireland and Ukraine, meaning that it could be an unfamiliar lineup named for the friendlies.

It is a final chance for fringe players to make a late push for selection, with Wales not scheduled to play another game before their squad is named for the tournament.

Ukraine await Wales in Kiev on Monday, but then it is only a June friendly with Sweden that separates them from their opening Euro 2016 fixture against Slovakia in Bordeaux.

Wales were mightily impressive in reaching the finals, finishing just two points behind Belgium - the number one-ranked side in world football - during qualifying and losing just one of their 10 matches.

Coleman's side fell to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Netherlands in November, but their performance further proved that they can hold their own against some of the bigger boys of European football, even if the Dutch failed to qualify for Euro 2016.

On paper, Northern Ireland look like a more straightforward test, but the performance and lessons Coleman may learn from some of the fringe players could be more important than the result for Wales in this one.

Recent form (all competitions): WWDLWL

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland's wait has not been quite as long as that of Wales, but it will still be a welcome return to the international stage this summer.

The 1986 World Cup was the last time that they were involved in a major tournament, while Euro 2016 will mark the first ever time that they have appeared in a European Championship.

Admittedly, they were handed a kind qualification group including Romania, Hungary, Finland, Faroe Islands and Greece, but they were by no means favourites to reach the finals, yet alone finish top of the standings.

Like Wales, Northern Ireland lost just once on their way to qualifying, finishing one point clear of the unbeaten Romania, who boasted the best defensive record in all of qualifying with only two goals conceded.

It was the Romanians who dealt that solitary defeat to Northern Ireland, but the Green and White Army finished the group by going six unbeaten and, including friendlies, go into Thursday's match on an eight-game undefeated streak.

It will be almost a year to the day since their last defeat when they take on Wales, and coincidentally that also came against a home nation, with Scotland running out 1-0 winners at Hampden Park courtesy of a late Christophe Berra strike.

That extended Michael O'Neill's rather worrying record of never having won an away friendly during his time in charge, with two draws and five defeats, while Northern Ireland have not even scored in an away friendly since August 2006 - a run of 13 matches that includes 10 defeats.

Things were better away from home in qualification, with 10 of their 21 points coming on their travels, but this will be their last away game before taking on Slovakia in June.

O'Neill's side face Slovenia in Belfast on Monday night before hosting Belarus in May as they look to cram in as many warm-up friendlies as they can before their tournament opener against Poland on June 12.

The draw has not been kind to them in France, though, with world champions Germany and Ukraine joining Poland as opposition, so it is up to O'Neill to maintain his side's momentum heading into the tournament if they are to stand any chance of getting into the knockout rounds.

Recent form (all competitions): DWDWDW

Team News

Arguably Wales's two most important players, Bale and Ramsey, are missing from the squad for this double-header, along with Hal Robson-Kanu, James Collins, Andy King and Paul Dummett.

Ben Davies (head) and Tom Bradshaw (hamstring) have joined the list of injury concerns, although they are expected to be fit to face Ukraine on Monday.

There are still some experienced heads in the camp, such as Ashley Williams and Joe Allen, but Coleman is likely to use the opportunity to experiment with his squad.

O'Neill will no doubt give a number of fringe players a chance to prove themselves too, including uncapped duo Michael Smith and Conor Washington, who have been called into the squad.

The visitors are without a couple of key players too, though, as Chris Baird is sidelined and Chris Brunt has been ruled out of Euro 2016 with a knee injury.

Wales possible starting lineup:
Hennessey; Gunter, A Williams, Chester, Davies, Taylor; J Williams, Allen, Ledley, Huws; Lawrence

Northern Ireland possible starting lineup:
McGovern; Cathcart, McAuley, McNair; McLaughlin, Evans, Dallas, Davis, Norwood; Ward, Lafferty

Head To Head

Wales are unbeaten in their last seven meetings with Northern Ireland, winning four and drawing three.

Indeed, Northern Ireland's only victory in the last 12 meetings came back in May 1980, when Noel Brotherston got the only goal of the game at Ninian Park.

These two sides last met in May 2011, when a Wales side managed by Speed won 2-0.

We say: Wales 1-0 Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland have established themselves as a tough team to beat under O'Neill, and with Wales missing their two best players, this could be a tricky game for the hosts. However, it is their last scheduled home game before the finals, and Northern Ireland's away record in friendlies is too poor to ignore, so we are going for a narrow home win.