What's at stake for NI in their World Cup qualifiers?

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Northern Ireland beat Malta twice during the last international window Northern Ireland may have already secured a play-off spot for the World Cup, but there is still a lot on the line in their upcoming qualifiers. From gaining promotion to League A, to the threat of relegation to League C, Michael McArdle's side will know they cannot rest on their laurels in these two fixtures. NI are unbeaten since new manager McArdle took charge, but upcoming games against the two teams above them in League B Group 2 will be their toughest task yet. BBC Sport NI looks at the possible outcomes heading into the final round of fixtures. Unlike teams in League A, sides in League B cannot directly secure a spot in the World Cup this round. They must earn their spot through a play-off. As well as securing a play-off, the winners of each group in League B will also be promoted to League A for the next Nations League campaign. Northern Ireland's hopes of promotion are slim with the side in third position, four points behind Switzerland who top the group with two games to go. They are confirmed a spot in the World Cup play-offs regardless of the upcoming matches. However, their chances of topping the group will be over if they lose to Turkey, or if they draw and Switzerland avoid defeat against Malta. Northern Ireland would need to win both of their remaining fixtures, while Switzerland and Turkey fail to win their other match, to have any chance of finishing first. NI have never made a World Cup before and will know promotion to League A would provide the opportunity to test themselves regularly against Europe's strongest sides. Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Turkey defeated at Mourneview in March Turkey, Northern Ireland's next opponents, sit one point ahead of them on seven points. Their meeting could therefore be crucial in terms of who secures second spot. Turkey were the 1-0 victors when the sides met earlier in the campaign, but NI will take confidence from their performances under McArdle so far. While the final two matches will not affect Northern Ireland's World Cup play-off place, McArdle believes the outcomes could have longer-term consequences. "The higher finish gives you that ranking for the next round of the Uefa Nations League for the draws," McArdle said. "The actual path one and path two [for the World Cup qualifiers] are still the same. It gives you slight seeding differences, but the effect that they have on path two are irrelevant. "So, second and third, unfortunately, are very similar when it comes to the play-off qualification, but when it comes to next year's seedings for the Nations League draw, it has a slight impact." In a worst-case scenario, Northern Ireland could face relegation out of League B if results elsewhere go against them and they fail to pick up enough points in their final two matches. The four bottom-placed teams in League B are relegated automatically, while the two lowest-ranked third-placed teams in League B will also drop into League C. Slovakia, Latvia, Isreal, Albania, and Montenegro could finish in third in their respective groups and end the campaign with the same or a better points total than Northern Ireland. McArdle added that it is important the side "control our own destiny" by registering positive results in their remaining two fixtures. "We don't want to be slipping into League C," he said. "So, that's the other aspect that drives us as well is making sure that if we can get a result or two results in these two games, then that means we control our own destiny with regards to League B as well." Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Chambers made her senior debut against Malta The past few years have represented a period of transition with the average age of the squad for the final qualifiers below 24. Despite their lack of experience in European competitions, NI have shown encouraging signs throughout the campaign with a number of young players establishing themselves at senior level. McArdle has shown his desire to embed younger players in, and named uncapped Cora Chambers in his first squad and has now named Emily Cassap in his latest squad, who has never been involved in the senior set-up. "I think the big incentive is trying to get better all the time, so we want to continue to progress and continue to aim high and see what comes and test ourselves. "There's various projects at the moment within the one goal of qualifying for tournaments. Some of those projects are investment in players and some of those players are youth players where we have to invest to see if they are capable and if they are capable, we have to give more minutes, more caps, more camp experience. "At the moment, this is an opportunity to invest in a couple of the younger players to see what they've got and see if they can contribute and we believe they can."

What's at stake for NI in their World Cup qualifiers?

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