Israel v Rep of Ireland, Ramat-Gan Stadium, 5.50pm RTE2: The ranking list of the world's footballing nations issued by Fifa each month throws up quite a few curiosities, but few seem more bewildering at first glance than the fact that a country that hardly ever beats decent sides away from home has managed to clamber to within shooting distance of the sport's top 10.
Take a look, though, and there it is: number 12 - Republic of Ireland.
Around these parts there is utter fascination that a country with two-thirds of the population of Israel could ever have reached such dizzy heights in the international game.
The remarkable thing is that the last time the Irish headed off anywhere for a competitive away game against a team that might even vaguely have been considered qualification rivals and won was back in February 1987 when Scotland were beaten 1-0 in Glasgow.
That victory helped Jack Charlton's side to Euro '88 but Ireland have subsequently made it to three World Cups, albeit without winning our qualification group, without repeating the feat.
The way this current group is shaping up, however, Brian Kerr's side could probably do with ending the run this evening at the Ramat-Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv.
Kerr and a number of players have suggested this week they would settle for a point this evening and a draw does seem the most likely outcome.
A win, however, hardly seems out of the question against a team whose current status in Group Four might actually be just a little misleading.
The eight points Avraham Grant's side have taken from their four outings to date have generated considerable expectation among the local population but even here it is acknowledged by many that the table is a little flattering, for six of those points were the product of narrow wins over Cyprus, another was yielded by an erratic home draw with the Swiss, and only the draw in Paris stands up to scrutiny as a genuinely impressive result.
Grant has a number of talented players to work with, most notably Yossi Benayoun, Avi Nimny and, though he does not always play, Yaniv Katan, but the national coach is short of real quality in key areas, most notably the left side of his defence and, because his first choice is injured, in goal.
Kerr, in contrast, has a much stronger panel to choose from and with all 22 of what is essentially a full-strength squad coming through training yesterday he has quite a few options to play with.
With Kevin Kilbane, Andy O'Brien and Stephen Carr all set to start, however, the only serious question appears to be who will start on the right side of midfield, where the selection of Andy Reid would suggest Kerr really is out to win the game and the inclusion of Steve Finnan would indicate a more cautious approach.
Reid would be the more exciting choice and, against a vulnerable-looking Israeli defence, potentially the more rewarding one, but on balance Kerr seems likely to stick with the game plan adopted in Paris, where the Liverpool right back did well after being picked to start.
Against France he played a key role in containing Thierry Henry and here his presence would, at the very least, allow Carr to push forward more freely.
Damien Duff should be more than a match for Omri Afek, the Salamanca right wing back who will attempt to press forward at every opportunity.
If the Dubliner does start getting in behind his opponent it seems certain there will be opportunities for Clinton Morrison and Robbie Keane to leave their opponents needing to score to achieve even a draw.
In those circumstances they would have to beat Shay Given, whose fitness was clearly viewed as a considerable boost yesterday, Kenny Cunningham saying: "He's probably been our most consistent player over the last few years so it's certainly good news.
"The test of a top-class goalkeeper is that he's there when he's called upon," he continued. "We've seen that time and again with him, even in games where there's been long periods where he's had nothing to do and then suddenly he's needed to make a top-class save. Invariably Shay makes it.
"A win tomorrow would certainly put us in a strong position," continued the Irish skipper, "but you don't want to get carried away . . . a defeat could leave us playing catch-up and that's not a very nice place to be."
PROBABLE TEAMS
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Given (Newcastle Utd); Carr (Newcastle Utd), Cunningham (Birmingham City), O'Brien (Newcastle Utd), O'Shea (Manchester Utd); Finnan (Liverpool), Keane (Manchester Utd), Kilbane (Everton), Duff (Chelsea); Keane (Tottenham), Morrison (Birmingham City).
ISRAEL: Aouate (Racing Santander); Afek (Salamanca), Gershon (Hapoel Tel Aviv), Ben Haim (Bolton Wanderers), Banado (Maccabi Haifa), Keisi (Hapoel Peth Tikva); Nimny (Beitar Jeursalem), Badeer (Maccabi Haifa), Tal (Maccabi Haifa), Benayoun (Racing Santander); Balili (Kayserispor).
