No less than seven Burnley players have their World Cup hopes firmly in the hands of Monday evening's qualification fixtures as they bid to join Steven Defour's Belgium and Tom Heaton's England in Russia next summer.

Berg Gudmundsson and Iceland have one foot on the plane

Defour and Belgium had already cruised to World Cup qualification before the final sets of qualification fixtures this weekend. Heaton's England joined them with automatic progression as they defeated Slovenia 1-0, though the Burnley captain missed out as he continues his recovery from a dislocated shoulder.

Johann Berg Gudmundsson helped Iceland take a giant step towards qualification for their first ever World Cup after impressing at Euro 2016. Gudmundsson scored the first of three goals as Iceland comfortably defeated Turkey 3-0, thus ending their hopes of progression. A win for Iceland against minnows Kosovo will secure their route to Russia.

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Vokes faces several clubmates in qualification decider

Excitement is building for an almighty showdown between Wales and Republic of Ireland on Monday night in Cardiff. Serbia look as if they are going to secure automatic qualification, although they still need to ensure they defeat struggling Georgia to top the group, leaving the fixture in Wales' capital a crucial one to decide who could join them pending a playoff.

Wales sit one point above Ireland with both sides still holding a possibility of qualifying top, reaching the playoffs by coming second or missing out by finishing third. Sam Vokes' Wales can qualify automatically if they defeat Ireland and Serbia slip up against Georgia. However, the likes of Robbie Brady, Jeff Hendrick, Stephen Ward, Kevin Long and Jon Walters can also qualify automatically if both they and Georgia win, though a draw or a defeat for the Irish will end their hopes altogether.

Meanwhile, Chris Wood was on target for the 24th time in his New Zealand career as they defeated Japan 2-1 whilst they await their inter-continental playoff opponents in a World Cup qualification showdown next month. Peru are currently in pole position for that spot holding Argentina to a 0-0 draw and leaving the global giants facing the possibility of missing out on qualification altogether.

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