The games that show the flaws in a 48-team World Cup

Teams could, of course, play for specific results before third-placed teams qualified. Take one incident at Euro 2004, which led to Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and Italian federation president Franco Carraro making accusations of match-fixing . If Sweden-Denmark was a draw and the teams scored at least twice, Italy would finish third because they scored fewer goals in matches between the three sides. Sweden equalised in the 89th minute. The final score? Sweden 2-2 Denmark . Uefa insisted there was nothing suspicious about the result. There is a further twist at this World Cup. The fixtures for the third-placed teams are determined by which groups provide the qualifiers. Play early, and you don't have an idea where you will go if you finish third. Play later, and you know what the path looks like. What does that mean in reality? The runners-up in Group J will play the winners of Group H - Spain are top of the table right now. But where will the third-placed team in Group J go? They could play the Group L winners, perhaps England, or Switzerland who finished top of Group B. Austria and Algeria will know what the last 32 looks like. They could be in a position where finishing third is more favourable than second. Rather than playing for a draw, Austria might feel they are better off losing and taking up that match. The weather may yet play a part too. If there are storms which cause a match to be paused , Fifa says the other game in the group will not be halted. …