The 2022 World Cup will include 13 nations from the European Confederation. Ten teams have already qualified for next year's competition, with the remaining three national teams to be determined in the second round. In this phase, 12 teams will compete in three-group play-offs for a spot in the 22nd edition of football's premier tournament. As per the draw, one of the Italian and Portuguese teams will be unable to participate in the competition. Let's take a look at the second-round fixtures of the European Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2022. 

FIFA World Cup 2022: Second Round of European Qualifiers

Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Croatia, England, and Germany are among the ten national teams that have qualified for the main event.

The second-round will feature 10 second-placed teams from the first round's group stage, as well as the best two Nations League group winners. 

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Portugal, Scotland, Italy, Russia, Sweden, Wales, Turkey, Poland, North Macedonia, and Ukraine are among the participants in this phase. The semifinals of the second phase will be held on Thursday (March 24, 2022) and the finals will be played on Tuesday (March 29, 2022). Let’s take a look at the qualification process of this round.  

Path A

The runner-up in Group E in the first round, Wales will face one of the best two Nations league group winners, Austria in the semifinals. The winner of this match will face the winner of the match between the Group F runner-up Scotland and the Group D runner-up Ukraine. Based on recent form, Scotland have a better chance of progressing from path A.

                                     Path A Fixtures

                                     Source: https://www.uefa.com/ 

Path B

Group H runner-up in the first round, Russia will meet Group I runner-up, Poland in the semifinals. The winner of this match will play against the winner of the match between the Group B runner-up, Sweden, and one of the best two Nations league group winners, the Czech Republic. Given their recent performances, Russia have a better chance to advance from path B. The Russian national team has competed in the World Cup for the past two editions.  

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                                     Path B Fixtures

                                     Source: https://www.uefa.com/

Path C

The Group A runner-up in the first round, Portugal will face the Group G runner-up, Turkey in the semifinals. On the other side, the runner-up in Group C, Italy will face the runner-up in Group J, North Macedonia. Italy and Portugal are likely to be the finalists of this group. Both teams feature a number of talented players who play for European club football powerhouses. Therefore, losing one of the teams would be a major setback for the World Cup 2022 in Qatar. 

                                     Path C Fixtures  

                                     Source: https://www.uefa.com/

Verdict

Italy have won the World Cup four times and they are one of the most successful national teams in world football history. Italy did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup, but their recent performances under head coach Roberto Mancini have been outstanding. Italy won the UEFA EURO 2020 tournament in July. It will be a huge setback for Italian football if they fail to qualify for two World Cups in a row.

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On the other hand, Portugal haven’t missed a World Cup tournament since 2002, and Cristiano Ronaldo has participated in every World Cup since 2006. It will come as a huge shock to the billions of Ronaldo admirers around the world if Portugal fail to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2022.