Euro 2016 Qualifier preview: Gibraltar v Republic of Ireland

Group D - Friday, September 4

20.45pm - Estádio Algarve, Faro-Loule

Republic of Ireland will attempt to keep their Euro qualification dreams alive when they travel to the Estádio Algarve in Portugal to face Gibraltar on Friday night.

New kids on the block

Gibraltar may not have much experience in competitive international football matches but they certainly have not disgraced themselves in their first ever European Championship qualifying campaign.

They restricted the World Champions to just four goals in Nuremburg and bagged their first competitive goal in the 6-1 defeat to Scotland. For a small team that has only recently entered the international fold, they have looked remarkable capable. The next target for the Gibraltarians will be to avoid defeat in a competitive match for the first time.

This game against Ireland will be Gibraltar’s first under the guidance of former Charlton goalkeeper Jeff Wood who took over from interim Coach Dave Wilson this year.

A glimmer of hope

The Irish will be expecting to win comfortably when they travel to the Iberian Peninsula on Friday. Any other result will surely end any remaining hope that they have of qualifying for next summer’s tournament.

Marin O’Neill’s team are currently in fourth place Group D but are only 5 points behind group leaders Poland. They trail Scotland by two points and are four behind World Champions Germany.

When the teams met in October last year, Robbie Keane bagged a hat-trick in just 13 minutes as Ireland ran out 7-0 winners. The result was just one goal short of equally Ireland’s biggest ever win in a qualifying tournament, a feat achieved in 1983 when they beat Malta by eight goals to nil.

Discipline will also be a key factor for the Irish as they currently have five players just one booking away from suspension. Seamus Coleman, James McCarthy, James McClean, Glenn Whelan and Marc Wilson will all face bans should they enter the referee’s book on Friday evening. The Irish have not travelled too well recently having picked up just one win in their last six competitive away matches. That win came away to Georgia in their first Group D game.

Betting tips

Gibraltar have yet to score a home goal in a competitive match but they did net their first away goal against Scotland at Hampden Park in March. It was no surprise that their first international goal was scored by Lee Casciaro. The Lincoln Red Imps striker was the top scorer in the Gibraltar Premier league last season with a haul of 20 goals. He can be backed at 14/1 with bet365 to score Gibs debut home goal.

As for the match result, the only real question should be how many goals Republic of Ireland can score. On the off chance that the home side bag a goal, it might be worth looking at the total goals market. bet365 will give you a very respectable 9/2 on a total of six goals.

Go To bet365

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07/09/2015     © Frixo 2024