AFTER a magical month in France it’s back to reality this week for the Wales football squad and for thousands of their supporters.

And their extraordinary exploits at Euro 2016 have changed the reality for Chris Coleman’s men.

Wales will now rightly be seen as a real force in European football having reached the semi-finals in their first major tournament for 58 years.

The latest FIFA world rankings will see Gareth Bale and teammates rise 15 places to 11th – two places above England.

Just like in the 1958 World Cup, when it took Brazil to knock out Wales, they were only beaten by the eventual champions in Portugal.

And, while Pele scored the goal to send Jimmy Murphy’s men home from Sweden all those years ago, this time it was another all-time great in Cristiano Ronaldo that finally ended the dream.

When they do make it to the biggest stage Wales certainly know how to make an impact.

But they now face the challenge of ensuring that we don’t have to wait another six decades before experiencing another summer like this.

There has been a lot of big talk since Wednesday’s agonising semi-final defeat at the hands of Ronaldo and Nani in Lyon.

A lot of fans seem to be taking it for granted that Wales will be there for the World Cup in Russia in 2018 but that is by no means a forgone conclusion.

There are no exceptional teams in the qualifying group but there are no pushovers either.

Austria, despite a shocking summer in France, have excellent players and a decent qualifying record in recent years.

Likewise, the Republic of Ireland are far more regular visitors to football’s top table and will give Wales two very tough games.

Serbia are another tough nut to crack, as Wales are all too aware from that painful night in Novi Sad in 2012 when they were lucky to lose 6-1.

Even trips to Moldova and Georgia will be a real test of the team’s resolve.

And, while all are beatable at the Cardiff City Stadium, Wales will find that their success will make life much more difficult over the next few years.

Their qualifying rivals will all show Coleman’s team much more respect than they would have done previously.

They will view a point in Cardiff as a decent result and Wales will have to work out new ways to win games and pick up points.

As we have seen over the past few weeks, and in particular in that never to be forgotten victory over Belgium in Lille, when they are the underdogs and they can hit the opposition on the break Wales thrive.

But when they are the favourites and come up against a team, like Northern Ireland, determined to stifle the talents of Bale and Aaron Ramsey and squeeze the life out of a game they have struggled to adapt.

It started to happen at the end of the last campaign when we saw Israel park the bus and settle for a point and Wales couldn’t find a way through.

The team has won thousands of new fans thanks to their incredible run to the last four of the Euros.

But those casual supporters, many of whom lined the streets of the capital last Friday to welcome the team home, have not been through the hard times with this side.

And they will not necessarily stay on board the bandwagon if Wales are held 0-0 by Moldova on September 5 and slip to an unfortunate 1-0 defeat in Austria on October 6.

Coleman, of course, is well aware of the potential problems and pitfalls he and his team face and he’s already planning how to overcome them.

The Wales boss has even suggested that he could change the 3-4-2-1 formation that has been so successful over the last three years.

“I’m going to have to come up with something a little bit different than I did in the last campaign probably to try to get us to win enough games to qualify,” he said.

Asked if that meant a change in formation, Coleman added: “Maybe, I’ve had something in my head.

“Before going into the last campaign I had that formation in my head and it was such a big change for the players because they’d never played it.

“I had to convince them that it was good for us and why.

“But, the thing is, in the campaign we’re not going to have them for six weeks. We’re going to have them for a week or 10 days.

“When you change formation with an international team sometimes you’re on thin ice but you have to be brave and I will be.”

Coleman says he’s learned from his dismal 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign when he took over from the late Gary Speed and won’t make the same mistakes again.

“Whatever I think we should do, if I think it’s a big change, I will do it,” he said. “If I fall flat on my face so what?

“I’d rather do that than not do anything.

“In my first campaign, for large parts of it I didn’t do anything. I left it the same. I wouldn’t make that same mistake again.

“If you’re prepared to ask yourself questions on why you haven’t got what you want and you’re brutally honest with yourself that’s how you learn – or that’s how I’ve learned anyway.

“I looked at my first campaign and I though I’m never ever going to do that again.

“I’m never going to take an easy option. I’m never going to try to be something that I’m not.

“I was trying to do everything that Speeds was doing because I was told it was working and don’t change it. It didn’t work for me – it blew up in my face.

“I’ll never make that mistake again.”

The next few years may be tougher than many people expect but if the FAW can keep hold of Coleman the future of Welsh football appears to be in safe hands.