SCOTLAND already know they face a formidable task in the play-off round of EURO2020 qualifying but that won't stop ardent Tartan Army followers from tuning in when the draw for the competition takes place on Saturday evening.
Steve Clarke's side were paired against Israel for the one-leg Path D semi-final against Israel on March 26 with a second play-off match against either Norway or Serbia to follow. If the Scots can safely negotiate those two encounters then a place in next summer's finals is guaranteed. Scotland already know that if they make it through the play-offs they will be placed in Group D against England; the draw on Saturday will provide the identity of the other teams who will make up the rest of the group.
As one of the host nations Scotland will entertain those two teams at Hampden Park while the match against England will take place at Wembley as Gareth Southgate's men – runaway winners of Group A in the qualifying campaign – have been guaranteed three home games as a result of that achievement.
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Where to watch it: Sky Sports Football
When: 5pm, Saturday, November 30
Where is it: Bucharest
The pots for Saturday's draw shape up as follows:
Pot 1
Belgium
Italy (hosts, Group A)
England (hosts, Group D)
Germany (hosts, Group F)
Spain (hosts, Group E)
Ukraine
Pot 2
France
Poland
Switzerland
Croatia
Netherlands (hosts, Group C)
Russia (hosts, Group B)
Pot 3
Portugal
Turkey
Denmark (hosts, Group B)
Austria
Sweden
Czech Republic
Pot 4
Wales
Finland
Winner play-off Path A (Iceland, Belarus or Hungary would be placed in Group F, Romania would be placed in Group C)
Winner play-off Path B (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia, the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland would be placed in Group E)
Winner play-off Path C (Scotland, Norway, Serbia or Israel will be placed in Group D)
Winner play-off Path D (Georgia, North Macedonia, Kosovo or Belarus will be placed in Group C unless Romania win Path A, then the Path D winner will be placed in Group F)
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Why do some teams already know which group they are in?
The host nations who have qualified or could qualify via the play-offs have already been placed in groups or putative groups to ensure that they have at least two home games. Since Russia and Denmark both reached UEFA EURO2020 via the European qualifiers, a draw was made on November 22 to decide which team would play all three of their Group B games at home. Denmark came out of the pot meaning they will have three games at Copenhagen's Parken Stadium while Russia will stage two matches at the Saint Petersburg Stadium.
The group stage draw - with additional host nations who have reached the play-offs - looks like this thus far:
Group A: Italy*
Group B: Russia, Denmark*
Group C: Netherlands*, Romania
Group D: England*, Scotland
Group E: Spain*, Republic of Ireland
Group F: Germany*, Hungary
Bold teams have already qualified for the finals
*Guaranteed to play all three group games at home
READ MORE: Scotland drawn against Israel in Euro 2020 play-off semi-final
How the pots were determined
Seedings are based on overall European Qualifiers rankings, which were determined as follows (results against teams in sixth place were discarded):
a) final position in group
b) points
c) goal difference
d) goals scored
e) away goals scored
f) number of wins
g) number of away wins
h) lower disciplinary points total (3 points for red card including for second booking, 1 point for single yellow card for a player in a match)
i) position in overall UEFA Nations League rankings
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