As the Challenge Cup group stages reach the final round, four of the five Guinness PRO14 teams are still in with a chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

With only the five group winners and three best runners-up going through, teams will need to be at their very best if they wish to continue their European campaigns.

Zebre, Benetton, Ospreys and Connacht are all still capable of grabbing those spots while Dragons are playing for pride.

Here’s what there is to look forward to ahead of an exciting and decisive weekend of action:

FRIDAY

Grenoble v Benetton Rugby – Pool 5 (Stade des Alpes, Grenoble, 6.45pm)

Benetton Rugby have enjoyed a great run of form lately that has put them in good contention to top the pool and qualify for an automatic quarter-final on home soil.

Just a point separates the Italians from their qualification rivals Harlequins and they will need a win against Grenoble to give themselves a shot at progressing either as group winners or best runners-up.

Benetton emerged victorious out of the reverse fixture with a bonus point in the first round of fixtures with a convincing 40-14 win.

Tommaso Allan scored 18 points in that game and the fly-half has been be preferred to compatriot Ian McKinley on Friday night.

However good Benetton’s recent form has been it has been largely down to impressive performances at home and are without a win away in Europe this season – they need a first.

Dragons v ASM Clermont – Pool 1 (Rodney Parade, 8pm)

Dragons are the only Guinness PRO14 side going into the weekend in the knowledge that qualification for the knockout phase is impossible.

Two wins and three losses from their five Challenge Cup games has left them placed third in the pool coming into the last game and six points adrift of Northampton Saints.

Ceri Jones’ men will be looking to save face in this one but face a tough test against runaway pool leaders Clermont.

Not only do the French outfit boast a perfect record in Europe but they are also out in front in the Top 14 too.

Victory looks like a tall order and Dragons could be forgiven if they went into the match with one eye on their next Guinness PRO14 fixture against Munster at Rodney Parade on January 26.

SATURDAY

Pau v Ospreys – Pool 2 (Stade Hameau, 1pm)

Ospreys were downed by a last-minute Ryan Mills drop goal when they faced pool-leaders Worcester Warriors last weekend meaning their only hope of progression to the knockout round is to win Saturday’s game against bottom-of-the-pool Pau.

Worcester’s lead at the top unassailable meaning all Ospreys can hope for is one of the three available best runner-up spots and even with a win, they will need results elsewhere to finish up in their favour.

The two sides have only ever met once before and that was in the reverse fixture in round one when Ospreys ran out 27-0 winners.

Pau however are on a six-game winning run at home in the Challenge Cup which could spell trouble for Ospreys.

Zebre Rugby Club v La Rochelle – Pool 4 (Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, 3pm)

With Enisei-STM only able to record a solitary point from their five games, Pool 4 has become somewhat of a three-horse-race.

A home quarter-final is off the table for Zebre who will not be able to catch La Rochelle but they will have to face them in the final game of the pool stages.

Having lost the reverse fixture last weekend in France, the Italians will have another crack at la Rochelle this weekend, this time on home turf.

Zebre can still progress in one of the three best runner-up positions, but a win is vital.

Bristol Bears currently have a two-point advantage over Zebre meaning that the Italians will have to hope that Enisei-STM can produce a shock result in order to leapfrog them and have the best chance of qualification.

Zebre’s Carlo Canna is the tournament’s leading scorer this season with 54 points and fly-half will be looking to impress again with one eye on that Italian No 10 jersey ahead of the Guinness Six Nations next month.

Bordeaux-Begles v Connacht Rugby – Pool 3 (Stade Chaban-Delmas, 3pm)

Connacht Rugby come into the final game sitting level on points with Sale Sharks at the top of Pool 3, having clinched victory over Sale in round five to ensure the battle for top spot will go down to the wire.

A win over Bordeaux-Begles this weekend would almost certainly guarantee the Irish province a spot in the quarter-finals but they will be looking over their shoulders at results elsewhere.

Sale will face a Perpignan side that have yet to win in Europe this season but failure to beat them would hand Connacht top spot – providing the Galwegians take care of business at Stade Chaban-Delmas.

Connacht have won all three of the previous encounters with the French side, including the reverse fixture in round one.