Parts three and four of what is a monumentally challenging 2025 for Wales' women are upon us.
At the beginning of the calendar year, Rhian Wilkinson's side had four blocks of fixtures ahead of them, with a total of nine matches.
Each of the nine opponents are higher in FIFA's global rankings than Wales, fully highlighting the quality of sides they are facing this year.
The opening camp in February produced some real positives, though, particularly as Wales came from behind in their second match to claim a stunning 1-1 draw with Sweden - who at the time were ranked fifth in the world, 25 places above Wales.
Manager Wilkinson celebrated a year in charge the day after that highly-creditable draw in Wrexham, and she remains unbeaten in six home matches and has won six of her 12 games at a win rate of 50%.
But the challenges keep coming thick and fast as Wales host Denmark at Cardiff City Stadium on Friday night before travelling to Gothenburg to face Sweden at Gamla Ullevi stadium four days later.
As a former defender, who won a remarkable 183 caps for Canada and claimed two bronze Olympic medals during her career, Wilkinson knows the value of facing stellar opposition only too well.
And while determined to see improvement in performances and results throughout the current Nations League campaign, the remaining four fixtures in the competition provide the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame inductee with further chances to build for the summer.
And what a summer it is shaping up to be.
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Wales sit 31st in the world rankings at present. Their Euro 2025 group stage opponents are ranked as follows:
England - 4th
Netherlands - 10th
France - 11th
Few will give Wales hope of picking up a point in Switzerland, let alone progressing into the knockout stages of the tournament.
But in Wilkinson, Wales have a leader who remains desperate to improve standards and raise expectations across all departments.
This was evidenced at her latest squad announcement when referencing her disappointment with ticket sales for the upcoming Nations League contest with Denmark in Cardiff.
Wales now have a figurehead who wants to have the uncomfortable conversations. Wilkinson is not a cheerleader and won't tiptoe around the awkward issues.
READ MORE: Rhian Wilkinson Warns England That Wales Will Be Armed And Dangerous At Euro 2025
And this is exactly the type of leader Wales need. It's not about using 'inspire' and 'next generation' as buzzwords. It's about challenging and questioning in a bid to actually drive the game forwards through action.
If crowd numbers are low, let's talk about it.
If performances and results aren't up to the required standard, let's say so.
“We were disappointed with our loss against Italy and that’s something that I was almost proud of from the team," explained the head coach.
"We want to keep pushing our own standards and there’s a lot of improvement areas from both those games.
"What I’m liking about the team is how we are dissecting games and the players themselves were disappointed with the loss."
To that end, Wilkinson - while undoubtedly having an eye on what's to come in July - is showing Wales are edging towards a position where they can be either disappointed or critical - perhaps even a combination of both - when assessing the team's trajectory in what, in fairness, is a brutal Nations League campaign.
They are boosted by the return of Rachel Rowe for the upcoming camp after the Southampton midfielder missed the February double header through injury.
Wilkinson praised the 32-year-old's unique intensity and described her as a player who "epitomises giving 100% for Wales".
They will once again be without Rowe's fellow midfielder Sophie Ingle as she continues her recovery from an ACL injury suffered during Chelsea's pre-season match against Feyenoord in early September.
It all means Wilkinson could yet make more tweaks as she continues her preparation for Switzerland.
But whatever occurs prior to the Euros, and even in the summer tournament itself, the Red Wall can rest assured that Wilkinson, her staff and players, are pushing to drive standards to new heights to take the game in the country to a new level.
