Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson is in the tricky position of having to prepare for a World Cup his side haven't qualified for yet.
The Boys in Green were drawn to face co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea in next summer’s World Cup, but they have to overcome the Czech Republic and either Denmark or North Macedonia if they’re to secure their spot at the tournament.
March’s play-off games are the focus, but given the short turnaround time between the play-offs and the World Cup finals, Hallgrimsson and the FAI have to make preparations for a tournament that they’re still not certain they’ll be part of.
Should they qualify, Ireland will open the World Cup with a match against South Korea in in Guadalajara on Thursday, 11 June. A week later they will travel to Atlanta to take on South Africa before concluding the group against co-hosts Mexico in Mexico City on Wednesday, 24 June.
The logistics of preparing to play those games starts now and Hallgrimsson admits that putting plans in place, when you’re not sure you’ll be there, is a strange position to be in.
"First things first, we're not there yet," he said. "We at least know we are in Mexico, and there's going to be heat there in June for sure.
"It’s not an air-conditioned stadium in Mexico, so that would be one puzzle that we need to solve, but we haven't started thinking about that yet.
"Let's have it as a secondary start, focusing on the Czech Republic and hopefully a game after that. That would be the big one.
"It's a very short turnaround from the games in March, and then final preparation for the World Cup. There’s a lot of things that need to happen, and we need to start thinking about things for example, like this one now, we know we play in Mexico.
"We need to get serious now and use this moment and try to prepare as well as possible."
Hallgrimsson has experience against Mexico and Korea from his time in charge of Iceland and Jamaica. He led Iceland to a 3-0 win over Mexico in 2018, while he suffered a 3-0 reversal as Jamaica boss as well as claiming a 2-2 draw.
The Ireland boss believes that Ireland could beat any team in the group, they just have to earn the right to be there now.
He said: "I've played Mexico on two or three occasions with Jamaica and Iceland, but they're always a tough opponent. But I think all the teams are beatable for us.
"South Africa I haven't played against, but Korea I've played against and they’re always a tough opponent, a tricky opponent.
"I wouldn't say there is a favourite in the group. Mexico is the highest ranked, but there's no favourite before it kicks off. I think it's a good group. If we qualify, it's a good group to be in."
