It’s been confirmed by FIFA that the draw for the World Cup play-offs will be held on Tuesday 17th October in Zurich at 14:00 CEST, which will then determine who makes it through to the final competition in Russia 2018. These four fixtures will include the eight second best runners-up from the nine European qualification groups, with the home-and-away matches set to be played in the period between the 9th and 14th of November. The eight teams taking part in the play-offs will be seeded in two pots with the four highest-ranked teams placed in one pot. The ranking will be based on the World Ranking published on 16 October.

Following Tuesday’s success against Israel, Italy now only have to pick up just one point in their final two Group G matches against Macedonia and Albania, which would be enough to guarantee second spot in the group standings. Securing first place is still a possibility for the Azzurri, although one that is now increasingly complicated considering Spain’s three point lead and also their advantage in terms of goal difference and head-to-head.

Source:  figc.it