European champions Italy and Portugal could meet for a place at the 2022 World Cup after being drawn in the same play-off path on Friday. The draw determined that one of the world’s top-ten ranked national teams will miss the most important international tournament.Ronaldo’s despair and Silva’s apology to the nation after Portugal’s defeatThe Azzurri and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal both finished second in their qualifying groups, behind Switzerland and Serbia respectively – and their group stage failings will come back to bite hard. Italy will host North Macedonia in the play-off first round in March, with Turkey visiting Portugal, before the winners face off for a spot at next year’s finals in Qatar.One of the last two European Championship winners will not be at the next World Cup. Portugal won the Euro 2016 title. Who will come up short? We’ll find out in March 2022, then all the play-off matches will be played. Italy, who beat England on penalties in the Euro 2020 final earlier this year, are hoping to banish the memories of their play-off heartache from four years ago when they lost to Sweden and failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1958. Portugal have featured at every major championship since missing out on the 1998 World Cup. They only narrowly missed out on automatic qualification when Aleksandar Mitrovic’s late goal snatched a 2-1 win for Serbia in the two teams’ last group match.World Cup Qualifiers play-offs could be more mouth-watering than the WC itselfElsewhere in the playoffs, British rivals Wales and Scotland could play each other in the final of Path A. Scotland will welcome Ukraine to Glasgow in their semi-final game. Wales take on Austria in Cardiff, with the winners to have home advantage in the final.The Welsh are hoping to play in the global showpiece for the first time in 64 years, while Scotland have not qualified since 1998. Their manager Robert Page aims to end the decades-long wait.”We’ve given ourselves a great opportunity. It was in 1958 that we last qualified for the World Cup finals and through the play-offs again, so the incentive is there for us. We worked ever so hard to get that runners-up position in the group and earn that home draw, and we’ve had the luck of the draw that if we win that semi-final we will also be home for the final, so there’s everything to play for.”The #Azzurri will face North Macedonia in the World Cup play-off semi-finals. The winner will then play either Portugal or Turkey for a place at #Qatar2022 🗳️#VivoAzzurro #WCQ pic.twitter.com/INcPiUFOdp— Italy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@Azzurri_En) November 26, 2021 Russia face Poland in the Path B semi-finals, with the winners to host Sweden or the Czech Republic. The Russians, who reached the 2018 quarter-finals as the host nation, have only ever lost one World Cup qualifier at home — against Germany in 2009.Here is you European World Cup play off draw… pic.twitter.com/ChrZX8Iy3L— Man on the Post (@ManOnThePost) November 26, 2021 QATAR 2022 – European play-off drawPath A – Semi-finalsScotland v UkraineWales v AustriaPath B – Semi-finalsRussia v PolandSweden v Czech RepublicPath C – Semi-finalsItaly v North MacedoniaPortugal v Turkey
