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Roy Hodgson will today discover England’s opponents for the 2018 World Cup qualifying, writes John Cross in St Petersburg.

Hodgson, of course, does not yet know whether he will still be in charge as England boss. But that’s another matter.

England chief Hodgson is one of the big name European bosses - Italy’s Antonio Conte, Belgium’s Marc Wilmots and Wales manager Chris Coleman are also in St Petersburg - to have made the trip.

Sadly, Gordon Strachan isn’t making the trip to see who Scotland - who are in with the third seeds - will get. Even the English FA are only sending a three strong delegation of Hodgson, press officer and one member of admin staff.

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Funnily enough, there was a much bigger turnout for the qualifying draw in Rio four years ago….

(Image: PA)

LIVE: Follow the draw on the Mirror Football LIVE blog

It will be a typically lavish FIFA affair and expect outgoing president Sepp Blatter to make the most one of the last of his big occasions before his successor is elected in February.

Expect it to be long, drawn out and rather painful. It kicks off at 4pm UK time but the European part of the draw won’t be happening until around 5.25pm.

Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova - well, who else would you choose in Russia? - along with TV host Dmitry Shepelev will be up on stage, guiding us through it.

(Image: Alex Livesey - FIFA)

Among the draw assistants - those plucking out the balls - are Alexey Smertin and Olivier Bierhoff while we’ll be treated to traditional Russian music and dance. Don’t expect it to go on time!

The Konstantin Palace - about an hour outside of the city centre - is a wonderful setting. We’re expecting about 94.8 million to watch from around the world as the show is beamed to 164 countries.

The fixtures and dates will be announced on Sunday. But England could get a really tricky draw - Italy, Sweden, Turkey, Finland and Kazakhstan would be the nightmare.

England will be keeping their fingers crossed for the draw but even Hodgson admits he doesn’t know whether he will be in charge.

(Image: FIFA via Getty Images)

My strong suspicion is that he will but the FA don’t want to jump the gun after giving Fabio Capello a new contract before the 2010 World Cup - and then wishing they hadn’t before the end of the tournament.

Hodgson, who attended a lavish function on Friday night with other bosses and FIFA hierarchy, said: “Regarding my own future, I am fully focused on preparing England for the Euros and - like the players - am determined to make an impact on the tournament.

“Therefore, my mind is firmly on securing qualification and preparing well for France.

“For me, this is all about the draw and ensuring that the team are doing all the right things on and off the pitch to prepare long term for the tournament in Russia.

(Image: Laurence Griffiths - FIFA)

“We have a good nucleus of young players in the current senior team who could be a big part of this tournament and it's our job at The FA to ensure they fulfil their potential.

"I'm not going to tempt fate by stating who England might want to play or avoid in the ballot and besides, that would be disrespectful. We've seen in the recent Euro 2016 qualification period that virtually all competitive matches are difficult.”

Northern Ireland are in pot three while Republic of Ireland are in the fourth seeds. Italy and France are the real dangers as they missed out on top seeding.

There are seven Groups of six and two of five while the major nations will play in the biggest Groups to ensure the TV ratings.

(Image: Martin Rose/Getty)

England only squeezed into the top ten with their win in Slovenia last month and they have made a perfect 100 per cent start to their Euro 2016 campaign which is likely to also ensure Hodgson gets a new two year deal.

Wales forward Hal Robson-Kanu admits being among the top seeds is an “absolute honour” for Chris Coleman’s men.

Robson-Kanu said: “Being top seeds for the World Cup draw is an absolute honour. Being the No.9 for the tenth ranked team in the world is an honour.

“But the draw and the top seed is a reward for all the hard work that everyone has put in. But hopefully it’s just the start for us.

“Chris Coleman has been incredible. He stepped up, had a massive void to fill, he’s made it his own and has got all the players pulling in the right direction and has given the players belief. He said we can achieve anything we desire and we’re achieving it.”

Pot one: Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Romania, England, Wales, Portugal, Spain, Croatia.

Pot two: Italy, Slovakia, Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, France, Iceland, Denmark, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Pot three: Poland, Ukraine, Scotland, Hungary, Sweden, Albania, Northern Ireland, Serbia, Greece.

Pot four: Turkey, Slovenia, Israel, Republic of Ireland, Norway, Bulgaria, Faroe Islands, Montenegro, Estonia.

Pot five: Cyprus, Latvia, Armenia, Finland, Belarus, Macedonia, Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Moldova.

Pot six: Luxembourg, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Georgia, Malta, San Marino, Andorra