What do Scotland need to go through? Tartan Army's World Cup hopes hang by a thread

Scotland's World Cup hopes hang by a thread as they wait to learn their fate and whether they make it to the knockout stages.

Out of the 12 teams that finish in third-place in the group stages, eight will enter the round of 32.

If teams finish level on points, which is a likely possibility, rankings will be marked on goal difference.

Scotland's minus-three goal difference sets them back, requiring several results to go their way for their World Cup campaign to continue.

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Bosnia and Herzegovina will make it through in one of the best third-place team slots, advancing after beating Qatar 3-1.

South Korea also looks relatively safe, with a two-goal advantage over Scotland.

The Tartan Army will have to keep a close eye on the nine remaining groups still to play, starting off in Group D, with Australia and Paraguay in action from 3am tonight.

The losers of the contest will end with three points, while a draw will put both sides on four, pushing Scotland down.

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Steve Clarke's side ideally needs Australia to win by two or more goals to damage Paraguay's goal difference.

In Group E, Ecuador and Curacao are on one point, with both in action at 9pm against Germany and the Ivory Coast, respectively.

Any result other than a win for either Curacao or Ecuador is good news for Scotland, with both sides facing tricky fixtures to make it to the last 32.

Group F looks unlikely to provide any support for the Tartan Army, as they need Japan to hammer Sweden by at least four goals tonight.

Scottish supporters will want to keep a close eye on Group G, with a win for Egypt against Iran in the final group game ensuring third-place finishes on less than two points.

As it stands, Belgium sit in third-place, but play their final game against New Zealand, with victory for either nation taking them to the last 32.

The same situation plays out in Group H, where the Tartan Army will hope for Spain to beat Uruguay so the third-place team can only finish on two points.

In Group I, a draw between Senegal and Iraq would be the best result for Scotland, with both sides finishing on one point.

A win for Senegal will see them finish in a better position than Scotland on goal difference.

Over in Group J, Algeria and Austria are both vying for second place, with a point sending both teams through. Scotland ideally needs Austria to win by two or more goals.

In Group K, Clarke's side wants DR Congo to draw with Uzbekistan, or the latter to win by less than four goals.

Group L, which concludes on Saturday night, sees Croatia play Ghana, with Scotland needing Ghana to thump Croatia by at least three goals.

A lot of moving parts for the Tartan Army to keep an eye on, but their hopes of qualification are still alive.

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