With 375 days to go until the 2022 World Cup gets underway in Qatar, there can be no room for error for the sides looking to book their place at next winter's showpiece tournament.
Following the withdrawal of Ryan Fraser in the Scotland squad, Newcastle United have six first-team players in World Cup qualifiers this month, but how many of The Magpies' stars will feature on the global stage next year, battling it out for international football's biggest prize - the holy grail.
VAVEL take a look at the Newcastle players who could be in action for their respective national teams during the final international break until March next year.
Jeff Hendrick
With the final two rounds of European qualifiers remaining, The Magpies midfielder will be hoping to end Group A on a high with The Republic of Ireland and finish in third, after already being out of contention to qualify for Qatar 2022.
They meet Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal in Dublin this evening in front of a 52,000 sell-out crowd at the Aviva Stadium, before ending their qualification campaign against Luxembourg, looking to avenge a shock 1-0 home defeat suffered back in March, on Sunday.
Despite a lack of game time at Newcastle this season, the 29-year-old will be expected to start in both matches.
Emil Krafth
Sweden are currently top of Group B with 15 points from six matches and could qualify for the World Cup if they beat Georgia this evening and nearest challenges Spain fail to beat Greece.
Though, if the top two both claim victories in the penultimate games, then the meeting between the sides in Seville on Sunday will decide who qualifies as group winners.
Out of all The Magpies players to feature at next winter's World Cup, Krafth appears the most likely and the defender has played a significant role in Sweden's qualification matches, missing just one fixture.
Fabian Schar
The Switzerland international has only made two first-team appearances for Newcastle this season. But could he impress new head coach Eddie Howe by steering his national side to their 12th World Cup?
Switzerland along with the Euro 2020 winners Italy are confirmed as the top two in Group C and with The Swiss just behind The Azzurri on goal difference heading into Friday's game in Rome, which side will take the advantage and lead the way going into the final round of games.
Schar has missed four of The Swiss' six matches but picked up two assists in their most recent qualifier - a 4-0 win over Lithuania. The defender will be eager to help his side secure their place to Qatar automatically rather than have to endure the tension of the play-offs.
Unlike Schar's Switzerland, Lewis' Northern Ireland will definitely not be appearing at the World Cup after experiencing an underwhelming campaign in similar contrast to their Irish counterparts.
But they could play a decisive part in who wins Group C as The Green and White Army play their final two matches at Windsor Park in Belfast against Lithuania and Italy, while Switzerland host Bulgaria on Monday with top spot up for grabs.
Similarly to Schar, Lewis will also be desperate to fight his way back into The Magpies' first-team with a string of positive displays on international duty, having only played a staggering 96 minutes.
Slovakia are already eliminated in Group H, after Russia and Croatia sealed the top two spots.
Dubravka's side are in third with 10 points from eight matches and finish their qualification with a home tie against Slovenia followed by a trip to Malta.
Newcastle supporters will simply be hoping their number one shot-stopper doesn't suffer another series injury whilst away with his national side, especially with an extremely difficult winter schedule approaching.
In a slightly different format to the European qualifiers, qualification in the South American format which features ten sides, sees the top four advance to Qatar 2022, while the fifth-place team progresses to the inter-confederation play-offs.
Paraguay are currently sitting in eighth after 12 matches and face an uphill battle to qualify for the World Cup with six games to go. They host Chile this evening and travel to Colombia on Tuesday, 16th November.
The final four fixtures are played in early 2022 and Almiron will be determined to help his national side try and reach their first World Cup since 2010.