Czechia take on the visitors Ireland in semifinal match of FIFA World Cup promotion. The match will be played on Thursday, March 26th at Fortuna Arena (Prague).
Czechia have traditionally been successful in the European Championship format. Yes, that does not apply to the previous tournament, but back in the 1990s they even reached the final, and overall they are regular participants in such competitions. It is worth noting that recently they have been showing solid results at home, where they rarely drop points and often control matches confidently. At the same time, their away form has been less convincing, which has cost them valuable points in key fixtures. The situation is completely different when it comes to the World Cup — since the split with Slovakia, such an achievement has been a rare exception. It cannot be said that the current generation looks particularly impressive either. Yes, they managed to win their Nations League group in a very tight battle with Ukraine, Georgia, and Albania. But in last year’s qualification, they had no real chance against Croatia — taking just one point from two matches (and even losing 1-5 away). In the rest of the matches, however, the results were quite good, with only a surprising slip-up in the Faroe Islands, where they lost 1-2.
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Ireland hope to finally overcome their long-standing misfortune. The “Boys in Green” have never been considered a top-tier side, even though they have had plenty of players from the Premier League. Still, their recent performances show some improvement, especially in matches where they manage to dictate the tempo and play on confidence. However, inconsistency remains a major issue, as strong performances are often followed by unexpected setbacks. Overall, they remain more of a mid-level team, whose ceiling was clearly demonstrated in the 2024 Nations League, where they lost not only to England but also to Greece — albeit with a couple of wins over Finland. On the other hand, when riding momentum, this team can be dangerous. Just look at how they turned their qualification campaign around in autumn. After starting with a draw and a couple of defeats, including one in Armenia, they then won three matches in a row — including a 2-0 home victory over Portugal and a dramatic 3-2 win away to Hungary in the decisive match. That result, snatched in a crazy ending, allowed them to leapfrog Szoboszlai and company at the last moment and secure a playoff spot. However, they have had many such playoffs before, and often failed in them — so the question remains whether that pressure will affect a team that also has to play away.
A total of eight matches have been played, with “Lokomotiva” winning half of them and losing twice. Home advantage should play a key role here — we expect Czechia to secure a victory on their own ground.
Prediction for the match: Czechia to win.
