England will have to battle to secure their Nations League A survival in their final two matches before the 2022 World Cup.
The Three Lions will face Italy and Germany during this international break, their final games before the showpiece tournament in Qatar.
England could end up getting relegated just before the World Cup
Gareth Southgate's priority will be to return to form ahead of the World Cup, having failed to win any of their previous four games.
England are bottom of Group A3 and can't reach the Nations League finals - even with wins in their remaining two fixtures.
But they can still get relegated and as a personal point of pride, England will be keen to avoid dropping down to League B.
However, what would that mean? talkSPORT.com has you covered...
It's not been the smoothest of rides for England as they prepare for the World Cup
England relegated from Nations League: What it means and what would happen?
England will be relegated if they lose to Italy on Friday, which would see the Three Lions drop into League B.
The obvious initial impact from that would be that the country won't be able to challenge for the Nations League title in 2024/25.
Only teams in League A can compete for silverware, with England instead forced to focus on promotion in the next edition.
Southgate has spoken about the positive impact that playing top sides regularly can have for the development of his team.
Yet dropping down in the Nations League would eliminate glamorous clashes with the likes of Italy and Germany and would instead see trips to Albania and Iceland.
Relegation would also damage England's coefficient, which could put them in bad stead for European Championship qualifying seedings ahead of the draw on October 9.
This could therefore mean the Three Lions face a tougher qualification group as a result ahead of Euro 2024 in Germany.
Southgate is preparing for a unique winter
Italy v England: talkSPORT coverage
This Nations League Group A3 tie will take place on Friday, September 23.
It is being held at the San Siro in Milan and will kick-off at 7:45pm UK time.
talkSPORT's coverage will start at 7pm with Adrian Durham while commentary will come from Jim Proudfoot and former England defender Stuart Pearce.
talkSPORT.com will also be running a live blog for all the action.
To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream. You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.
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