Promoted Sunderland, who have defied expectations to stay in the top half of the Premier League table, could be the worst affected with six players going to the tournament, while the likes of Fulham, Manchester United, Burnley and Crystal Palace will also have to make do without some key personnel.
Tunisian fans invaded the stade Charlety pitch when striker Santos scored for their team to make it 2-2.
African football hit dizzying heights before descending into violent farce
A United Nations plane with 33 people onboard crashed while attempting to land amid torrential rain in the DR Congo capital of Kinshasa on Monday, killing 32.
European champions Inter Milan comfortably booked their place in the Club World Cup final with a 3-0 win over Seongnam of South Korea on Wednesday. Inter will meet surprise packages TP Mazembe of DR Congo on Saturday after the African champions upset Internacional of Brazil 2-0 to become the first team from outside Europe or South America to reach the final.
Images and a round-up of all the World Cup qualifiers played across continents on Tuesday.
European champions Portugal spurned a two-goal lead against Tunisia, stumbling to a 2-2 draw, as France, one of the World Cup favourites, flexed their muscles with a comfortable 2-0 win over Ireland in warm-up friendlies on Monday.
Summary of World Cup qualifiers played across the world on Thursday
At least six African nationals had sustained injuries in the incidents. Police attributed two of the incidents to a dispute over African nationals playing loud music and other to a scuffle over public drinking.
Crystal Palace heaped more misery on Liverpool when they came from behind to win 3-1 in the Premier League on Sunday, six months after effectively ending the northern club's title hopes when they drew 3-3.
Ghana's head coach Avram Grant hit out at African Nations Cup organisers for giving his side a shoddy bus and lengthy commute ahead of their critical Group C clash with Algeria.
Tiny Cape Verde Islands catapulted themselves into surprise World Cup contention with a 2-1 victory away to South Africa.
The ninth edition of the Global Peace Index, which ranks the nations of the world according to their level of peacefulness, has ranked Syria as the most dangerous country in the world.
Global working conditions have worsened in 2014.
US Open champion Martin Kaymer sank an eight-foot birdie putt at the first extra hole to beat Bubba Watson in the four-man PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda on Wednesday.
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