With the World Cup 2022 less than a year away, having a number of UEFA Nations League fixtures to play in June and September isn’t the best planning from the European game’s organising body.
It throws up the question with the major nations certainly as to which players will be picked for the Nations League, given that injuries at that late stage of proceedings could be fatal to World Cup chances.
Having said that, the success of the inaugural Nations League shows that it’s a competition worth winning and infinitely better than meaningless friendlies.
From England’s point of view, they’ve been drawn into a classic group in A3.
With respect to Hungary, the clashes against European champions, Italy, and old foes, Germany, are likely to be the highlights of the early stages of the tournament.
FULL UEFA NATIONS LEAGUE 2022/23 DRAW AS FOLLOWS:
GROUP A
Group A1: Austria, Croatia, Denmark, France.
Group A2: Czech Republic, Switzerland, Portugal, Spain.
Group A3: Hungary, England, Germany, Italy.
Group A4: Wales, Poland, Netherlands, Belgium.
GROUP B
Group B1: Armenia, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Ukraine.
Group B2: Albania, Israel, Russia, Iceland.
Group B3: Montenegro, Romania, Finland, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Group B4: Slovenia, Serbia, Norway, Sweden.
GROUP C
Group C1: Faroe Islands, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Turkey.
Group C2: Cyprus/Estonia, Kosovo, Greece, Northern Ireland.
Group C3: Kazakhstan/Moldova, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Slovakia
Group C4: Gibraltar, Georgia, North Macedonia, Bulgaria.
GROUP D
Group D1 will be: Latvia, Andorra, Kazakhstan/Moldova, Liechtenstein.
Group D2: San Marino, Cyprus/Estonia, Malta.