Portugal and Italy's World Cup qualifying routes with Cristiano Ronaldo chances in balance

At least one of Cristiano Ronaldo 's Portugal or Euro 2020 winners Italy will suffer World Cup heartbreak this week as their qualifying campaigns come to a head.

The two European giants face the anxious prospect of negotiating the European play-offs in order to book a spot in December's Qatar showpiece, however there will be guaranteed disappointment for one. Should the pair progress from their respective semi-finals, they will meet in a dramatic decider.

While most of the continent's elite have already secured their World Cup passage, both Portugal and Italy failed to top their qualifying groups. And it's fair to say their campaigns haven't lacked in drama.

Portugal were pipped to top spot in Group A by Serbia in sensational fashion. The pair were level on points heading into the crucial final group game which saw them pitted against each other.

The Euro 2016 winners were aware a draw with Serbia would be enough to secure World Cup qualification, and they looked to have achieved just that as Renato Sanches ' opener was cancelled out by Dusan Tadic.

Fulham forward Aleksandar Mitrovic then scored a stunning header in the dying seconds to condemn Portugal to the play-offs and leave Ronaldo's World Cup hopes hanging perilously in the balance.

It wasn't the first time Serbia had left the Manchester United icon feeling exasperated during the qualifying campaign either. The Portuguese talisman famously threw his armband to the turf and stormed off the pitch after controversially being denied a last-gasp winner of his own in the two nation's 2-2 draw in Belgrade back in March 2021.

As for Italy, Chelsea 's Jorginho squandered a second-half penalty in a goalless draw with Switzerland in the penultimate group game