European Qualifiers for World Cup: what to look out for on Wednesday

The final European Qualifiers of September take place on Wednesday with key contests being played across all ten groups.

UEFA.com takes stock of the situation as the qualification picture gets clearer.

Wednesday 8 September

Group B: Greece vs Sweden, Kosovo vs Spain
Group C: Italy vs Lithuania, Northern Ireland vs Switzerland
Group E: Belarus vs Belgium, Wales vs Estonia
Group I: Albania vs San Marino, Hungary vs Andorra, Poland vs England
Group J: Armenia vs Liechtenstein (18:00), Iceland vs Germany, North Macedonia vs Romania

All kick-offs 20:45 CET unless stated

The big match 

Poland vs England
England and Poland have held sway in Group I despite attempts by Hungary and Albania to muscle in on their tête-à-tête. The EURO finalists edged March's meeting at Wembley 2-1, meaning the home side need three points in the return match to restore the balance.

The Biało-czerwoni have previous form when it comes to thwarting the Three Lions – just ask Jan Tomaszewski and his team-mates about their famous exploits in 1973 qualifying. However, Poland have not beaten England in the 48 years since, and injuries to Bartosz Bereszyński and Piotr Zieliński have weakened Paulo Sousa’s squad, though they will have Robert Lewandowski – who missed the defeat at Wembley. Poland's Portuguese coach continues to have faith: "The players have to believe in themselves," he said. "It will not be easy, but we hope to win."

After winning 4-0 in Hungary, England rested the bulk of their first team for Sunday's 4-0 thrashing of Andorra and are now five points clear at the top of Group I. However, manager Gareth Southgate is eager to keep his side on their toes, mindful that positive results could give England the impression that "we are better than we are" as they come up against "one of the best finishers in European football".

Worth looking out for

• Iceland became the lowest-populated country to reach a World Cup in 2018 and their chances of a repeat will take a key turn when they play their third home game of the week against the mighty Germany. The hosts, who were dispatched 3-0 in the reverse fixture and have never won against the Germans, are outsiders; however, North Macedonia were in a similar position when they stunned Die Mannschaft in Group J in March.

Tuesday 7 September

Group A: Azerbaijan 0-3 Portugal, Republic of Ireland 1-1 Serbia
Group D: Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-2 Kazakhstan, France 2-0 Finland
Group F: Austria 0-1 Scotland, Denmark 5-0 Israel, Faroe Islands 2-1 Moldova
Group G: Montenegro 0-0 Latvia, Netherlands 6-1 Turkey, Norway 5-1 Gibraltar
Group H: Croatia 3-0 Slovenia, Russia 2-0 Malta, Slovakia 2-0 Cyprus