Play-off Draw The Likely Top Seeds

A look at Ireland's possible opponents

RUSSIA

World Ranking:Six.

Manager:Guus Hiddink. Vastly experienced and very capable, the veteran Dutch coach has earned his stripes at both club and international level working with the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea , South Korea and Australia .

History:Their worst result was a 16-0 defeat by Germany back in 1912, but as the Soviet Union they were a major power, winning the European title in 1960, finishing as European runners-up three times and, in one guise or another, making nine appearances at World Cup tournaments.

Group performance:Pretty good. Took 21 points from nine games, beating everybody home and away – bar Germany – to be guaranteed second place. Conceded just five goals, three of them to the group winners.

Best performance:Probably the 3-0 win in Helsinki back in June that more or less ensured qualification would come down to a two-horse race.

Worst performance:Undoubtedly the 1-0 defeat by Germany over the weekend in Moscow, the first game in the competition they had ever lost on home soil.

Notable stars:Yuri Zhirkov ( Chelsea ), Roman Pavlyuchenko (Tottenham) and Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal).

Ireland's record against them:Won 4, Drawn 3, Lost 6.* *includes games against the USSR

FRANCE

World Ranking: 10.

Manager:Raymond Domenech. Slightly eccentric former boss of under-21s who has had difficult relationships with a number of the team's major stars. Proposed to his girlfriend during post-match interview when France crashed out of Euro 2008 but guided (with a little help from Zinedine Zidane) the team to within a penalty shoot-out of the 2006 World Cup.

History:Have produced many great stars and won the European championships back in 1984 before managing to hold both the World and European titles simultaneously a little under a decade ago.

Group performance:Not so great. Took 18 points from nine games but certain of finishing second behind Serbia and ahead of Austria. Their once celebrated defence have conceded as many goals as Ireland so far.

Best performance:Either the win at home to Serbia or the 1-1 draw in Belgrade where Thierry Henry got their equaliser after the visitors had been reduced to 10 men very early on.

Worst performance:Managing to lose badly in Vienna just a couple of months after the Austrians had looked a decidedly ordinary side at the European Championships.

Notable stars:Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Thierry Henry (Barcelona), Patrice Evra (Manchester United).

Ireland's record against them:Won 4, Drawn 4, Lost 6.

GREECE

World Ranking:12.

Manager:Otto Rehhagel. Controversial and much travelled manager who has been in charge since 2001. The German is a hugely pragmatic character with a stronger attachment to tactics than talented individuals. Remind you of anyone? History: None to speak of really prior to or since 2004 when they spectacularly came from nowhere to become European champions. It wasn't pretty, with the team producing a combination of muscular defending and strong set pieces but few back in Athens were complaining.

Group performance:Could actually still top Group Two although it would take the Swiss losing to Israel at home while, technically, they could also miss out on the play-offs but that really would take an unlikely combination of results.

Best performance:The 5-2 win over Latvia at the weekend was certainly their most important victory and they showed character to come back from 1-2 down at half-time. Latvia would have been in pole position for the runners-up spot themselves had they won.

Worst performance:The 1-1 draw in Moldova and the 2-1 defeat by Switzerland in Piraeus.

Notable stars:Giorgos Karagounis (Panathinaikos), Theofanis Gekas (Bayer Leverkusen) and Georgias Samaras (Celtic).

Ireland's record against them:Won 0, Drawn 1, Lost 1.

PORTUGAL

World Ranking:17.

Manager:Carlos Queiroz. Made his name with Portugal's youth teams 20 years ago and steadily climbed the international management ladder with jobs in America, Africa and, of course, two stints as Alex Ferguson's assistant. His spell at Real Madrid was less than a triumph. He hasn't set the world on fire since taking over Portugal from Big Phil Scolari.

History:Have made four World Cup appearances and finished as runners-up when they hosted the European Championships in 2004. Their "Golden Generation", the group that included Figo and won two World Youth Cups under Queiroz, never quite delivered at senior level particular disappointment.

Group performance:Lamentable home form in a group won by Denmark left them chasing results late on to keep Sweden at bay. They are still not completely sure of second place although a win over Malta will put an end to the uncertainty.

Best performance:The 1-1 draw in Copenhagen while the narrow win in Budapest pretty much saved their bacon.

Worst performance:Take your pick from any of the early home games but 0-0 against Albania in Braga probably nicks it.

Notable stars:Ronaldo and Pepe (Real Madrid), Jose Boswinga and Deco ( Chelsea )

Ireland's record against them:Won 4, Drawn 2 Lost 6.