Who Can Northern Ireland Face In World Cup Play-off?

Northern Ireland's Group A run has travel to a close, and now each eyes will move to nan World Cup play-off semi-final successful March.

Michael O'Neill's broadside secured a play-off acknowledgment to being 1 of nan 4 champion Nations League group winners who did not decorativeness successful nan apical 2 of their qualifying group.

That intends Northern Ireland will recreation a cookware 1 broadside successful nan play-off semi-final, and they will find retired their opponents successful Thursday's tie astatine noon.

So now nan image is now clear, who are nan 4 teams Northern Ireland could look successful their play-off semi-final?

World ranking: Ninth World Cup qualifying group: Second down Norway Last World Cup: 2014

Given their history and position successful world football, it's unthinkable to deliberation that Italy person not featured astatine a World Cup since 2014 successful Brazil.

Yet, nan four-time champions are astatine consequence of missing retired connected a 3rd world tourney successful a statement arsenic they vanished 2nd successful Group I down Erling Haaland's Norway, who automatically qualified for nan finals.

Their run was bookended by 2 defeats by Norway, including a dismal 4-1 nonaccomplishment successful Milan to extremity their run past week.

But contempt their form, nan Italians will still beryllium nan squad everyone wants to debar successful nan play-offs, and they are nan highest-ranked squad by a sizeable margin.

Northern Ireland past played Italy successful 2021, and really played a domiciled successful them sitting retired nan Qatar World Cup arsenic a goalless tie successful Belfast saw Roberto Mancini's broadside miss retired connected apical spot and automatic qualification, and they were stunned by North Macedonia successful nan play-offs.

Domenico Berardi and Ciro Immobile scored successful a 2-0 triumph successful nan return fixture successful that campaign, which opened Group D that March.

World ranking: 20th World Cup qualifying group: Second down Scotland Last World Cup: 2022

Denmark were moments distant from securing apical spot successful Group C, until Kiernan Tierney and Kenny McLean stepped up and sent Scotland to nan World Cup arsenic group winners successful a thriller successful Glasgow.

It was a crushing extremity to nan run for nan Danes, who looked for illustration they would stumble complete nan statement to scope nan finals successful Mexico, nan USA and Canada.

But now, they will beryllium a vulnerable proposition successful nan play-offs.

Of course, Northern Ireland person plentifulness of caller history against Denmark.

They astir precocious played successful June successful Copenhagen, erstwhile Christian Eriksen netted nan victor arsenic Denmark edged a 2-1 win.

In Euro 2024 qualifying, Denmark narrowly won astatine location but a superb capacity from Michael O'Neill's young broadside saw them extremity their run connected a high.

World ranking: 26th World Cup qualifying group: Second down Spain Last World Cup: 2002

Turkey person only qualified for 1 World Cup since 1958 which, for illustration Italy, is difficult to believe.

That sole outing came astatine nan 2002 tourney successful South Korea and Japan, and it was 1 to retrieve arsenic Turkey vanished third.

Vincenzo Montella's broadside person been nan awesome entertainers successful Group E, and person scored 17 goals successful 5 matches but conceded 12.

They started pinch a 3-2 triumph successful Georgia, and were subsequently hammered 6-0 by Spain successful their 2nd match.

Turkey past hit Bulgaria 6-1 and Georgia 4-1, and location was yet a sensible consequence pinch a much communal 2-0 triumph complete nan Bulgarians.

There was much nosy and games successful nan last qualifier, arsenic Turkey and Spain drew 2-2 successful Seville.

Expect goals nary matter who Turkey draw.

World ranking: 27th World Cup qualifying group: Second down France Last World Cup: 2006

Thanks to Austria's precocious equaliser against Bosnia-Herzegovina, Ukraine snuck into cookware 1 for nan World Cup play-offs.

Ukraine had already secured 2nd spot successful Group D connected Sunday acknowledgment to their triumph complete Iceland winner-takes-all last qualifier.

This will beryllium nan tie that astir cookware 4 teams want for 2 reasons. First of all, they are nan lowest classed of nan 4 nations.

Secondly, it would apt beryllium played astatine a neutral venue. Ukraine's 3 'home' qualifiers were each played successful Poland, successful Warsaw, Krakow and Wroclaw. owed to nan ongoing conflict pinch Russia.

Northern Ireland's past gathering pinch Ukraine successful a friends successful 2021, erstwhile Oleksandr Zubkov scored an early winner.

More famously, O'Neill's Northern Ireland stunned Ukraine for their first triumph astatine Euro 2016.

The tie for nan 2026 World Cup play-offs return spot successful Switzerland connected Thursday astatine noon.

Teams will beryllium drawn into 4 paths, which each incorporate 2 semi-finals and a final.

Pot 1 sides will beryllium drawn astatine location to nan 4 Nations League winners, which includes Northern Ireland.

Pot 2 teams, including Wales, will beryllium astatine location to a cookware 3 teams, including nan Republic of Ireland, successful nan different 4 semi-finals.

The winners of nan respective semi-finals successful each of nan 4 paths will past meet successful a final, and nan 4 winners of each way will suffice for nan World Cup finals.

There is an unfastened tie for nan final, which intends seedings are not taken into information for which squad will big nan final.

The one-legged semi-final will beryllium connected 26 March, and nan finals will beryllium played connected 31 March.