Macedonia vs Wales September 6, 2013

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Two nations in danger of falling out of contention for World Cup qualification this week, Macedonia and Wales clash on Friday with the aim of keeping their 2014 dreams alive.

As things stand, the pair currently sit on four points and six points in UEFA Group A, respectively, and a loss for either side would be enough to rule out any hopes of making it to Brazil next summer.

A win is absolutely vital for the desperate duo and three points on Friday could lift the victors to third place in the standings, although goal difference makes that less likely for the hosts.

Bale joined the squad in Cardiff on Monday following his world-record £86 million transfer to the Bernabeu, but having not played for Tottenham since July, Coleman says he is unwilling to throw his star performer in at the deep end.

Wales' chances may be hampered somewhat as a result, with Bale having scored five of his country's last eight goals, but Coleman will not be taking any chances with the former Spurs man.

"We are aware a lot of people will want to see him play in the home game against Serbia [on Tuesday].

"But he has no chance of playing 90 minutes on Friday or on Tuesday."

Newcastle United defender Paul Dummett could be in line for a senior debut after featuring for his club side against Manchester City this season, while Cardiff City teenager Declan john is also in the squad for the first time.

Dummett's chances of appearing were boosted as Swansea City left-back Neil Taylor was forced to pull out of the squad due to a thigh injury. Joe Allen (hamstring) and Neil Eardley (knee) were also forced to withdraw.

For Macedonia, Aleksandar Todorovski misses out on a place in the squad due to injury, while Stefan Sprivoski has been left out due to a lack of playing time, having failed to feature for his club side, Borac Cacak of Serbia, so far this season.

Central defender Boban Grncarov returns, as do left-back Aleksandar Lazevski and attacking midfielder Darko Tasevski.
When: Friday, Sept. 6, kickoff at 6 p.m. BST

Where: Philip II Arena, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia

Malta vs Denmark September 6, 2013

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Denmark will look to get back in the running for the World Cup when it takes on Malta in Friday's qualifiers.

The first place team gets an automatic spot in the 2014 World Cup but the second place team must settle for a two-legged playoff.

Denmark currently sits in fifth out of six teams in Group B with six points but they are still in the running. Second place Bulgaria only has 10 points while third place Czech Republic has nine. Bulgaria will be taking on first place Italy on Friday while the Czechs will host Armenia (six points). A draw in the latter game coupled with an Italian win and a Danish victory could put Denmark right back in the race for second place.

Denmark started its tournament with a 0-0 draw against the Czech Republic and a 1-1 tie against Bulgaria. A 3-1 loss against Italy hinted at problems to come but a 3-0 win over Czech Republic on the road proved to be very convincing. A 1-1 draw against Bulgaria at home did not hurt the team, but a 4-0 loss to Armenia at home has proved to be the difference between a tie for third place and fifth place in the group.  
Meanwhile Malta sits in last with three points and is essentially one loss and an Italian victory away from being completely eliminated from a chance at first place.

Prediction: Denmark will pull off a 3-0 win.
Start Time: 2 p.m. EST

Russia vs Luxembourg September 6, 2013

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Russia will look to seize control of Group F when it takes on lowly Luxembourg in the World Cup 2014 Qualifiers.
The top team in each UEFA group winds up qualifying for the World Cup next summer while the second place squad must endure a two-legged playoff to get a chance at traveling to Brazil.

Russia will host Luxembourg at Centralniy Stadium in 2014 World Cup qualifying play on Saturday.

The world No. 16 has gone 4-2 in six World Cup qualifying matches so far, posting 12 points. The Russians have defeated Israel and Azerbaijan while going 1-1 against Portugal and Northern Ireland.

Russia is two points behind Group F leader Portugal.

Luxembourg—the world No. 140—has yet to win a match in World Cup qualifying, drawing with Azerbaijan (twice) and Northern Ireland and losing to Israel (twice) and Portugal. The side is on the bottom of the Group F table with three points.

Russia currently occupies second place in Group F with 12 points and trail Portugal by two points; however, Russia has a game in hand on the Iberian squad and only needs a win to pull away from the pack.

The Russians opened their tournament with a 2-0 win against Northern Ireland and destroyed Israel 4-0 in their second match of qualifiers. The winning continued when Russia took down Portugal and Azerbaijan in two straight 1-0 decisions. However, the team was unable to build on this success as it lost 1-0 to Portugal in its fifth qualifier. In its sixth game against Northern Ireland, Russia had a prime chance to leap frog Portugal with two games in hand but flopped miserably in a 1-0 loss against Northern Ireland. While that game is unlikely to do much for Northern Ireland, it could hurt Russia's chances at winning the group.


When: Friday, Sept. 6 at 10:30 a.m. ET

Where: Centralniy Stadium, Kazan, Russia

China vs Singapore September 6, 2013

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Singapore’s clash against China tomorrow might be billed only as a friendly, but the tie holds significant importance for both teams.

While the East Asia country has lined up friendly matches against Singapore and Malaysia in preparation for their AFC 2015 Asian Cup qualifier against Indonesia next month, the Lions are looking to bounce back from their recent defeat in the same qualifiers against Oman as part of their rebuilding process under new coach Bernd Stange.

The Chinese come into this tie fresh off their impressive performances in the EAFF East Asian Cup in South Korea in July, where they finished in second place behind winners Japan. They went through the whole tournament undefeated as they held traditional Asian powerhouses Japan (3-3) and South Korea (0-0), while beating giants Australia (4-3).

Caretaker coach Fu Bo, who is temporarily taking over the China national team after the sacking of Jose Antonio Camacho in June, has rung in the changes with the side. He has rested Guangzhou Evergrande’s talismanic striker Lin Gao and PSV Eindhoven defender Sun Xiang due to their club commitments in the Asian Champions League, while giving national Under-20 captain Jin Jingdao his first senior team call-up. Fu has also recalled Zheng Zheng, Feng Xiaoting and Zhao Xuri after dropping them for the recent EAFF Asian Cup in the wake of the 5-1 humiliation against Thailand in June.

The Lions can draw inspiration from Thailand’s recent 5-1 mauling of China, but there is no denying there is a gulf in class between the two teams. China are ranked 95th in the Fifa standings, 60 places above Singapore's 155th. Furthermore, China have convincingly beaten them 2-1 at Kunming Tuodong and 4-0 at the Jalan Besar Stadium in the last two encounters during the World Cup qualification match in 2011.

Getting a result might not be the main objective then, but anything less than an encouraging performance from Singapore would raise questions against Stange’s methods and cast further doubts on his managerial ability.

South Korea vs Haiti September 6, 2013

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South Korea will look to end its four-match winless slide in men's football when it hosts Haiti on Friday.

The kickoff is at 8 p.m. at Incheon Football Stadium, just west of Seoul. It will be South Korea's first of two friendlies this month, with Croatia waiting on deck as the opponent next Tuesday.

Head coach Hong Myung-bo, who took over the national team in June, is seeking his maiden victory, with his squad having managed three draws and one loss in his first four contests.

South Korea is currently ranked 56th in the world and Haiti is 74th.

For the first time as the national team bench boss, Hong will have the services of Europe-based stars. Forward Son Heung-min of Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga and forward Ji Dong-won of Sunderland in the English Premier League are among eight players under contract with European clubs that will be at Hong's disposal for the match.

They were unavailable for three matches at the East Asian Cup in July and for the friendly against Peru on Aug. 14 because they were getting ready for new seasons in their respective leagues.

These overseas-based players will be counted on to provide an offensive punch for South Korea, which has scored just once in the four games under Hong. The team has been sorely lacking a finisher around the net, and the likes of Son and Ji, and the versatile midfielder Koo Ja-cheol of VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, will try to fill the void.

At the pre-match press conference held at Incheon Football Stadium on Thursday, Hong said he didn't want to place an extra burden on his players.

"I haven't asked our offensive players to do anything special," the head coach said. "My biggest concern ahead of this match is the pressure our players must be feeling. We have players who are capable of scoring, and I hope they can play up to their abilities."

   Hong also said even though Haiti is ranked below South Korea, his players should not take their opponent lightly.

"Haiti has some big-bodied players with good stamina, and they can steal passes in tight space to set up breakaway chances," Hong observed. "We will try to play compact football to beat Haiti tomorrow."

South Korea has been steady on defense with a young and athletic group of players based in domestic and Japanese leagues. Joining them this time is left fullback Park Joo-ho, who is off to a strong start in his first Bundesliga season with Mainz 05 after leaving FC Basel in Switzerland.

An unexpected competition for playing time has been brewing in the goalkeeper position. Jung Sung-ryong, a veteran of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, was relegated to the bench in South Korea's previous international match against Peru on Aug. 14. Kim Seung-gyu, making his international debut, made some spectacular saves to preserve a scoreless draw, and he should remain a threat to Jung's job security.