Republic of Ireland General Discussion Thread 2026

Yeah those Armenian’s did better than I thought they would v Hungary. Lack of fire power seems the Armenians problem.

That performance put Roy on the map. Diego Maradona was in the ground that night having just moved there and was utterly effusive in his praise for him in the Spanish press. He was all over that pitch.

Did I read somewhere that the lads were on the lash before the Spain match in Dublin? Something about an eating contest the day or two before, organised by Jack.

Scotland were heading for a solid 2-1 v Belarus . Commentator says “We will take it but no harm asking for a wee bit more”

I was thinking Irish soccer supporters would kill to have a team to have solid consistent wins. Nevermind asking for a “wee bit more”.

I don't see how the team can be criticised at all. Any team who can't go to Armenia and then win a game hardly belongs in any tournament. We aren't competitive at that level.

The players put in a shift even though their limitations were exposed throughout the entire game. They were well organised and it was a solid defensive display. Beyond that we have very little to offer.

Holding Portugal until the 90th minute is an achievement for this side.

It wasn't long ago the Scots were having similar horror results to us. A couple of solid players in the right positions can turn things around. McTominay would be a God for us.

I am listening to the Scottish analysis. Some of the crowd booed they said. Jayus they don’t know how good they have it.

Aziz was absolutely shocking against Armenia

All the Scottish players and management have admitted that they were shockingly poor in both games, despite picking up 6 points. Seems they, and the fans, want performances and not just results.

McTominay wanted to play for Scotland (or so he says). Rice did not want to play for Ireland.

If a player eligible for 2 or more nations is good enough to play for all of them, he will choose the one he wants to play for. A great example of this is Evan Ferguson (who wouldn’t have been in every England squad but would certainly have had a few call ups and with a good season could have been on the plane to America next summer)

If Portugal win on Tuesday and Ireland defeat Armenia it will mean Portugal qualify as group winners with two games to spare. This is a plausible scenario and the most likely.

That would leave Ireland and Hungary on 4 points.

Assuming Hungary beat Armenia in November and we lose to Portugal it would mean we'd be going to Budapest knowing a win of any sort would tie us on 7 points with Hungary. 2nd place would then be decided by Goal Difference.

A win on Tuesday is a must but it is also a must that we do so by 3 or 4 goals.

Also to note. Martinez has form for tinkering with his selections when qualification is wrapped up with some notable upsets. This could play into our hands in November.

Hungary are currently 3 goals better off than us with both sides having still to play Armenia and Portugal. If we level the GD or even go +1 or +2 then it reduces the chances of having to go to Budapest needing to win by 2 or more goals - which would be a monumental task for this team.

2-0 against Armenia is the bare minimum we should expect on Tuesday. This team is more than capable of doing it.