Republic of Ireland vs Netherlands

The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Republic of Ireland as they welcome the Netherlands to Dublin’s Aviva Stadium for a pivotal Euro 2024 qualifier.

Desperate to secure their first appearance at a major international tournament since Euro 2016, Ireland cannot afford another slip-up in this near-must-win fixture. Barring a 3-0 romping of minnows Gibraltar on home turf, the ‘Boys in Green’ have lost all four remaining Euro 2024 qualifying matches by an aggregate score of 5-1, including a 2-0 defeat at group pacesetters France earlier this week. With such an underwhelming record, Stephen Kenny’s men should consider themselves fortunate for trailing the second-placed Netherlands by only three points. But having played one more game, the hosts find themselves in a precarious spot. Ireland’s notoriously slow starts have seen them concede the opening goal within 20 minutes in two of their last three internationals, with both such games resulting in defeats.

In the meantime, a humiliating 4-0 loss at France in their opening Group B outing seems to have been a wake-up call for the Netherlands. They have since posted identical 3-0 home wins over Gibraltar and Greece to soar to second in the table, bolstering their bid to reach back-to-back Euro finals. New boss Ronald Koeman would be silly to let his side’s recent upturn in form carry him away, as the Netherlands’ disappointing five-game H2H form against Ireland (W1, D2, L2) calls for caution. On a more positive note, before slumping to the abovementioned defeat in France, the ‘Oranje’ had won six of their eight competitive away matches beforehand (D2), netting 2+ goals on seven occasions!