Comments on the match between Republic of Ireland and Portugal, 2:45 a.m. on November 14: Tickets handed to Ronaldo and teammates

Form of Republic of Ireland vs Portugal

Before the penultimate match of Group F, Portugal is leading with 10 points, far ahead of the 3 opponents ranked below by 5, 6 and 7 points. Theoretically, Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates still do not have tickets to North America next summer.

However, the possibility of Portugal being absent from the biggest football festival on the planet is probably less than 1%. Seleccao's journey has only slowed down a bit after the unfortunate 2-2 draw in the last match against Hungary.

It was a victorious match and the ticket to the 2026 World Cup seemed to be in the bag of coach Roberto Martinez and his team, but midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai's moment of brilliance in injury time helped Hungary snatch a valuable point.

To be sure of winning the ticket, Portugal need to win in the visit to Dublin this midweek. The task seems within reach for the team currently ranked 5th in the FIFA rankings. Because besides the home field disadvantage, Portugal has shown to be superior to its opponents.

In the last 5 encounters with the Republic of Ireland, Portugal have not lost once, earning 4 wins and 1 draw. However, it is important to note that in the most recent trip to Dublin, in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Seleccao only earned 1 point from a goalless draw.

In the first leg, despite having to travel to Lisbon, the Republic of Ireland only lost 0-1 due to Ruben Neves scoring in the 90+1 minute. The home team themselves are also in dire need of points to compete for second place in the group.

Currently, the Republic of Ireland is ranked 3rd and 1 point behind Hungary. If they do not lose in the reception of Portugal, Heimir Hallgrimsson and his team will still have hope, regardless of the result of the earlier match between Armenia and Hungary.

Then, the opportunity will be given to the Republic of Ireland in the final round, in the context of facing Portugal in Budapest. But in general, not losing to Portugal is certainly not an easy task.

Comments on the match between Republic of Ireland and Portugal, 2:45 a.m. on November 14: Tickets handed to Ronaldo and his teammates - photo 2 — Ronaldo is expected to shine to help Portugal win a ticket to the World Cup.

Coach Hallgrimsson is under a lot of pressure because he has only won 5 out of 14 matches leading the Republic of Ireland since taking the hot seat 16 months ago. In addition, the team from the United Kingdom has missed the biggest football festival on the planet for nearly 2 decades, so another absence is not surprising.

On the other hand, Portugal is almost certain to qualify for the 7th consecutive World Cup. Cris Ronaldo himself also wants to continue to improve his international scoring record (currently 143 goals in 235 matches). That will be the motivation for CR7 and his teammates to win in the next 90 minutes.

Team information Republic of Ireland vs Portugal

Republic of Ireland: Sammie Szmodics, Mark Sykes, Callum O'Dowda, Ryan Manning, Jayson Molumby are absent due to injury and suspension.

Portugal: Pedro Neto and Pedro Goncalves are two notable absentees for the visitors.

Expected lineups for Republic of Ireland vs Portugal

Republic of Ireland: Kelleher; O'Brien, Collins, O'Shea; Coleman, Cullen, Taylor, Johnston; Ebosele, Azaz; Parrott

Portugal: Costa; Cancelo, Dias, Inacio, Mendes; Fernandes, Neves, Vitinha, Bernardo, Ronaldo, Leao

Prediction: 1-2

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/nhan-dinh-tran-dau-ch-ireland-vs-bo-dao-nha-2h45-ngay-1411-ve-trao-tay-ronaldo-va-dong-doi-181078.html