FIFA World Cup qualifiers: A look ahead to the last round of matches in the European section

Jack Wilshire, Gary Cahill, and Danny Welbeck of England warm up during an England Training session ahead of their Group H qualifying match against Poland

The final round of matches for the European section of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup will take place today.

After a long and arduous run, for quite a few teams there’s still plenty left to do to ensure qualification whilst certain other teams just need a draw.

The rules are very simple – the teams that finish top of their respective groups automatically qualify for the finals, while eight of the nine runners-up will go into the playoffs. The runner-up team with the worst record against the rest of the teams in the group will miss out.

Five of the nine slots reserved for group winners has already been decided – Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands have all already clinched their berths by ensuring that they will finish top of the group regardless of tonight’s results.

Croatia and Sweden have also managed to seal a place in the playoffs by cementing second spot in their respective groups.

Here’s a preview of how the groups stand and what each team needs to do to ensure qualification: