England are eagerly awaiting to find out who they will face in the Qatar 2022 World Cup group stage.
The Three Lions' secured their spot at the tournament after going unbeaten and topping their qualifying group. Gareth Southgate's side will be placed in Pot 1 for the draw, but could still face a difficult group stage draw.
England reached the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, before suffering heartbreak in the European Championships final after losing on penalties to Italy at Wembley last summer. England fans will once again be dreaming of football coming home this winter, with the World Cup getting under on November 21.
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England will be joined by the likes of France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Argentina, Brazil and Qatar in Pot 1 for the draw on Friday. This means that England will avoid these teams until at least the knockout phase of the tournament, but could draw Germany, Netherlands and Croatia who are all in Pot 2, so what are the best and worst case scenarios for England?
England's best case scenario
England tend to do well in the World Cup group stages, only failing to progress out of their group on three occasions in their 14 tournament appearances. Southgate's side will be hoping there are no issues and comfortably qualify from their group into the knockout phases of the tournament.
Pot 2 throws up some difficult prospects, but the majority of teams should be relatively comfortable for the Three Lions to dispatch. USA secured their spot at the tournament earlier this week after a 2-0 win against Costa Rica and would be the favourable opponent from Pot 2.
In Pot 3, England will be hoping to draw the likes of Tunisia, Morocco or Iran who offer little threat for Southgate's side. In Pot 4, there is little fear for a side of England's quality, with Saudi Arabia ranking as the easiest opponent on offer.
Best case scenario: USA, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia.
England's worst case scenario
There are a handful of teams in Pot 2 that could cause England some real issues, with Denmark having run the Three Lions close in the Euro semi-finals last summer, whilst Uruguay also pose a serious threat. A rejuvenated Netherlands side under Louis van Gaal are also potential opponents, but Germany are the main team to avoid, despite Southgate's side beating them last summer at Wembley.
In Pot 3, there are familiar individual threats from the Premier League with Tottenham's Heung-Min Son a potential opponent with South Korea, along with Sadio Mane's Senegal side who won the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year. Poland offer a significant threat with one of the world's best strikers in Robert Lewandowski, but it is Mane and Senegal that would pose the biggest threat to the Three Lions.
Pot 4 is difficult to judge at this moment with plenty of teams still yet to qualify. England could potentially come up against the likes of Wales or Scotland should either team qualify, resulting in a difficult fixture for Southgate's side to overcome.
Ecuador look to be the most dangerous team in Pot 4 that has qualified for the tournament so far, having earned impressive results against Brazil and Argentina. England will be keen to avoid any South American side, with the Three Lions having struggled against teams from that continent in the past.
Worst case scenario: Germany, Senegal, Ecuador
In terms of tournament logistics, England would preferably be drawn into either Group E or F as it provides a better rest period before the tournament. Coming top of Group E would provide the team with an extra day's rest ahead of the final should they make it that far.
