Dhaka, Nov. 22 -- Italy will face Northern Ireland in the European play-offs in their bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup while Sweden meet Ukraine as 16 teams learned the pathways that determine the four remaining European slots for the global tournament.Four-times world champions Italy again failed to secure direct qualification after finishing second in their group as they seek to qualify for the first time since the 2014 edition.
They were knocked out in the play-offs the last two times and enter the second round as top seeds, with a potential final against either Wales or Bosnia & Herzegovina to qualify.Northern Ireland, on the other hand, have not qualified for the World Cup since 1986 and have beaten Italy just once in 11 meetings...