Ireland take on the visitors Finland in the round 5 match of UEFA Nations League group stage. The match will be played on Thursday, November 14th at Aviva Stadium (Dublin).
Ireland is close to meeting the minimum objective. The "Green Army" hasn’t qualified for a major tournament in quite some time, and they haven't come close either. However, this national team maintains a certain level. They finished second-last in both the previous Nations League cycle, below Scotland and Ukraine, and in the Euro qualifiers, where they only managed points against the underdog. Hallgrímsson has been working with this team in the Nations League, but even with the Icelandic coach, little has changed. After a weak showing in friendlies, Ireland lost without much resistance to England and Greece (0-2 in both matches). However, a key away victory in Helsinki revived some hope.
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Finland qualified directly for Euro 2020, marking the first "big" tournament in the country's football history. Moreover, they started with a win but didn’t make it to the playoffs, and their subsequent qualifying campaigns have been modest. They had a chance to qualify for the summer championship through the Nations League path, but it ended with a heavy 1-4 loss to their first opponent, Wales. Nonetheless, they managed to get promoted to a higher division. However, under Markku Kanerva, they’ve looked toothless in the higher division, losing by at least two goals to both favorites, Greece and England (twice). The worst part was losing at home to Ireland, led by Pukki. Now, avoiding last place seems nearly impossible—a draw at the Aviva would essentially seal their fate.
In 2020, the teams also faced each other in the Nations League, with "Suomi" winning both times. The "Green Army" should eliminate any suspense about the fight for third place at home. On their turf, they should be able to defeat their pursuers.
Prediction for the match: Ireland to win.
