Other than only a few teams, the lineup for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is set.
Friday saw the groups drawn in a typically extensive ceremony in Doha with England set to face a relatively favourable set of fixtures as they attempt to go one better than at Euro 2020.
Iran, the USA and one of Scotland, Wales or Ukraine await and, while Gareth Southgate was at pains to point that their first job is to manage they progress, few would doubt its the kind of group England would have wanted.
Indeed, they avoided the dreaded “Group of Death”.
With the likes of Germany, Denmark and Uruguay in pot two, things could well have been worse.
Largely, the teams one would generally imagine to be among the favourites for the World Cup face manageable groups. Holders France will play Saudi Arabia, Denmark and one of Peru, the UAE or Australia.
Brazil, meanwhile, have been drawn against Serbia, Cameroon and Switzerland.
As a result, an obvious group of death has been avoided.
Still, Group E pitting former world champions Spain and Germany against Japan and New Zealand or Costa Rica looks interesting, while Group H containing Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea is another mouth-watering prospect.
