WORLD CUP PLAY-OFF SEMI-FINAL
Czechia v Republic of Ireland, Fortuna Arena, Prague, 7:45pm.
TV
Live coverage on RTÉ 2 and RTÉ Player from 7pm.
ONLINE
Live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app.
RADIO
Live commentary on Inside Sport on RTÉ Radio 1, with coverage starting at 6pm.
WEATHER
A cloudy and cold day is in forecast for Prague on Thursday. Travelling supporters will have all the excuse they need to spend the build-up indoors in a pub with rain forecast early on and temperatures not getting above 8c. It will be dry come kick-off time but cold, with pitchside around 4c.
TWO GAMES FROM GREATNESS
One of the most important Republic of Ireland matches in a generation is a day away and hopes are high among players and supporters alike.
Heimir Hallgrimsson’s men take on Czechia in Prague on Thursday evening with the winner of that one-off game playing either Denmark or North Macedonia for a place at this summer’s World Cup.
Should Ireland get the better of Czechia, the qualification final will be played at the Aviva Stadium on Tuesday evening and will also be a one-legged affair.
Ireland are two games from greatness and while they are underdogs against Czechia, hopes are high in the Irish camp.
How Ireland have got to this point certainly lends to that belief.
No-one gave the Boys in Green much of a chance of making the play-offs in November when they needed to beat Portugal and Hungary in their final two group games to stand a chance.
Two stunning performances and five goals from Troy Parrott saw Ireland secure their place in the play-offs.
They’ll have to repeat the feat if they’re to make it to the World Cup, but optimism has rarely been this high within the camp over the last decade.
NO SURPRISES FROM IRELAND BOSS
Hallgrimsson, who was rewarded with a new contract for the way in which Ireland rounded off their World Cup qualifying group, is sticking with the same principles that got Ireland to the play-offs.
With a fully fit squad to select from, he will likely set up Ireland in much the same way he did against Portugal and Hungary.
Parrott will of course, lead the line up front while the vastly experienced Seamus Coleman looks set to start in defence, even if he doesn’t currently have 90 minutes in him.
Elsewhere the side pretty much picks itself with Jason Knight likely to start in place of the injured Josh Cullen, while newcomer Harvey Vale will be hoping to make a big impact in his debut game, even if it is off the bench.
Hallgrimsson has a clear vision in his head about how he wants his team to set-up and approach the game.
He explained: “It’s just about being ready and visualising what’s ahead of us. It’s important now to do a session at the stadium, for example, just to feel the atmosphere, see the stadium, feel the grass, et cetera, knowing what to expect, knowing what they are saying and how they see this game.
“And then it’s just tactical, being ready for what they will throw at us and do what we need to do and just remind ourselves why we are in this position.
“I think we all know by now why we got good results and good performances, and that’s the key, not be over-ambitious tomorrow, stay on point, focus on why we are here and trying to improve that.
“We’re not overly-analysing [Hungary]. We are just focussing on ourselves, trying to build on what we’ve been doing. We all know this coach will have played a different formation from what they have done before, so we’re just planning and preparing for both.”
AN UNLIKELY MAN STANDS IN IRELAND’S WAY
Miroslav Koubek would not have expected to be leading Czechia into a World Cup play-off six months ago.
The 74-year-old veteran of the domestic Czech league was low down the list of candidates linked to the job when Ian Hasek was sacked for overseeing a scarcely believable defeat to minnows Faroe Islands last year.
Jurgen Klinsmann, Cesare Prandelli and Slaven Bilic were among the names being linked to the job after Hasek got the elbow but high wage demands and the need for someone who immediately understood Czech football saw Koubek named as the shock appointment.
A Czech Liga man through and through, Koubek has called up 14 players from the domestic league, with the bulk of those players coming from Viktoria Plzen, a club he managed on three different spells.
The veteran manager is relying on home grown players, there are a sprinkling of international stars in his squad with the likes of Vladimir Coufal, Tomas Soucek and Patrick Shick all expected to start.
While Ireland fans will be hoping that Shick’s recent injury issues mean he’s not at the height of his powers in Prague, Koubek is wary of the threat that Parrott will present his side.
He said: “He is the type of player, Parrott, who can do everything. He is a killer.
“Of course there are special measures and instructions to try to nullify him but you know what these players do, they are world stars, they have special ability and can show it.
“But we hope that Parrott will be one we will be able to keep an eye on and we will have our players well trained so we do not lose this game.”
There’s pressure on both Koubek and his squad who lost much of the support of their own fans after that defeat to the Faroes and the surrounding fall-out. Players were forced to apologise to fans after not applauding them following their 6-0 win over Gibraltar in November, with Tomas Soucek stripped of his captaincy.
There’s been a rift between this Czechia team and their fans and if Ireland can keep things quiet during the early stages in Prague, over even nick an early goal, it wouldn’t take much for the supporters to get on their team’s back.
Here’s hoping.
Watch Czechia v Republic of Ireland on Thursday from 7pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app or listen to commentary on Inside Sport on RTÉ Radio 1