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England slip to just one place above Scotland in Fifa rankings
· Scotland 16th; Northern Ireland 32nd; Wales 53rd
· Spain still top rankings, with Italy second

Wednesday September 03 2008

England are now just one place above Scotland in the latest Fifa rankings. Fabio Capello's side, who could only draw 2-2 with the Czech Republic last month have dropped one place to 15th, just ahead of Scotland.

European champions Spain remain top for the third month in a row, following their 3-0 victory over Denmark two weeks ago. Even though Italy only managed a 2-2 draw against Austria last month, they climb up to second, passing Euro 2008 runners-up Germany,

Holland remain fourth in the rankings, with Croatia fifth. Meanwhile Brazil and Argentina stay in sixth and seventh position, despite winning medals in Beijing, because the men's football tournament is not included in Fifa's ranking co-efficient.

For the first time in four years, Turkey make the top ten, with France and Russia on 12 and 13. Northern Ireland are 32nd and Wales 53rd.

The full Fifa rankings with previous position in brackets

1. Spain (1)
2. Italy (3)
3. Germany (2)
4. Netherlands (4)
5. Croatia (5)
6. Brazil (6)
7. Argentina (7)
8. Czech Republic (8)
9. Portugal (9)
10. Turkey (13)
11. France (12)
12. Russia (10)
13. Romania (11)
14. Cameroon (15)
15. England (14)
16. Scotland (16)
16. Bulgaria (17)
18. Greece (18)
19. Israel (20)
20. Ghana (19)

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...rss&feed=sport