Portugal v Ireland Preview and Betting Tips

We were on course with our bet on Chelsea to beat Liverpool until Reece James saw red. Liverpool scored the resulting penalty and it was a backs to the wall performance in the second half by Chelsea to hold on for a 1-1 draw. The Blues look a well organised and well drilled team and our bet on them to win the Premier League at 5/1 is looking good at this admittedly very early stage. The World Cup Qualifiers take centre stage for the next fortnight and in the Portugal v Ireland game, Ronaldo will be aiming to break the all-time record for international goals. It could be a tough night for Ireland, check out our big match preview and betting tip below.

2022 World Cup Qualifying Group A

Portugal

It is fair to say that Portugal had an underwhelming campaign at Euro 2020. Cristiano Ronaldo managed to win the Golden Boot but they only managed one win and they were bitterly disappointing in their 1-0 defeat vs Belgium. Prior to the Euros, Portugal took 7 points from their first three World Cup qualifiers. However, they were far from convincing in their opening 1-0 win vs Azerbaijan where they needed a Medvedev own goal to seal victory. A 2-2 draw with Serbia followed and they then fought back from 1-0 down to beat Luxembourg 3-1.

There is no doubt that Portugal’s squad is way superior to Ireland’s. It is stuffed with quality performers and on paper, this should be a walk in the park for the Portuguese. They haven’t lost a home World Cup qualifier since 2008 (17 games) and they have won their last nine in a row. However, Portugal’s performances at the Euros were a shade worrying and the body language of the likes of Bruno and Ronaldo wasn’t great at times. Against stronger opponents, you would worry for Portugal but their ability should be enough to see them get the win tonight.

Ireland

Stephen Kenny has had a nightmare run of results since taking over from Mick McCarthy. He is trying to change the way that Ireland play and while there is no denying that results have been poor, there have been some small signs of progression. They caused Serbia plenty of problems in their opener but in the end, a Mitrovic masterclass secured a 3-2 win for the Serbs. Hopes were high heading into the Luxembourg game that Kenny could get his first win on the board but it ended in a disastrous 1-0 defeat in Dublin.

Since that loss Ireland are unbeaten in three friendlies. They drew with Qatar and Hungary and they finally got a win on the board vs Andorra. On the plus side for Ireland, Shane Duffy is back on form and the likes of Coleman, O’Shea and young Troy Parrott have started the season well for their clubs. However, Covid 19 has robbed them of in-form WBA striker Callum Robinson and Alan Browne, huge losses for a side that has struggled to score goals. Jason Knight is also out injured and Ireland look short on options in midfield. This is going to be a massive ask for this Irish team and their main objective will be to avoid a drubbing.

Portugal v Ireland Possible Lineups

Portugal: Rui Patricio, Guerreiro, Pepe, Dias, Semedo, Danilo, Moutinho, Fernandes, B Silva, Jota, Ronaldo.

Ireland: Kelleher/Bazunu, Coleman, Egan, Duffy, O’Shea, Manning, Cullen, Hendrick, Horgan, Connolly/Idah, Parrott.

Portugal v Ireland Betting Tip

Portugal are unsurprisingly long odds on to win this match. 2/9 is the best price currently available. Ireland are as big as 21/1 with the draw priced up at 6/1. Have Ireland any hope of pulling off a massive upset? If the version of Portugal that turned up against Azerbaijan appears again on Wednesday night, then Ireland could well put it up to the hosts. However, with a highly motivated Ronaldo hunting for goals, it may well be a tough night for the Irish.

Under Stephen Kenny Ireland have managed to get in level at half time in all but one of their matches. They will be trying to follow that same template on Wednesday night. Their main aim will be to keep Portugal out for as long as they can and then they’ll try to counter attack using the pace of Parrott and Connolly (if fit). It is hard to see them holding out for the whole match but given their record under Kenny, it might be worth backing the draw/Portugal in the halftime/fulltime market at odds of 3/1.

Portugal v Ireland Betting Tip: Draw halftime/Portugal fulltime @ 3/1

Key Manager Quotes

Fernando Santos: ‘It takes speed to dismantle this team and, if we do it well and are focused, and organised, I believe Portugal will win. We have quality players, but we need to be a team. Today it is not easy to win against anyone. We have to be at our best level and, if Ireland are also at their best level, we have the quality to turn the game around for our side.’

Stephen Kenny: ‘It’s a big challenge but we mustn’t be daunted by it. We must understand our strengths and counteract Portugal and be an attacking threat ourselves. Because you can’t go there and defend consistently for 90 minutes. Inevitably they’ll take you apart if you do that. We have to be positive in our approach.’

DaveStevos