Northern Ireland currently sit third in Group C on goal difference ahead of Bulgaria and need to match or better their result against Switzerland to consolidate their position.

Italy, on the other hand, need to do the same with Switzerland to finish in first place and automatically qualify for the World Cup in Qatar next year.

Pride is on the line for Ian Baraclough’s men while Roberto Mancini’s European Champions will want to avoid the embarrassment of being forced to take part in a play-off.

Northern Ireland earned themselves a 1-0 win in the first of a double-header at Windsor Park on Friday night against Lithuania.

However, they did not pick up a point in their reverse fixture against the Italians in the first match of their quest for qualification.

The home crowd at Windsor Park will be behind the Green and White Army for the fixture with a big result needed to end the campaign on a high.

Italy will aim to curb their form of three draws in a row that has allowed Switzerland back into the hunt for automatic progression to the World Cup.

The team have stagnated since their Euro 2020 victory in Wembley, winning only twice since then – a 5-0 victory over Lithuania and a 2-1 win over Belgium in the third-place play-off of the UEFA Nations League.

Mancini and co. have one final chance to reignite the fire before their preparations for the tournament in Qatar begins, should they finish first of course, and being massive favourites, an upset could see them spiral further.

Teams

Northern Ireland: TBA

Italy: TBA

Odds

Northern Ireland 13/1

Draw 9/2

Italy 1/5

Where To Watch

The match will kick-off at 7:45 pm and will be available to watch live on Sky Sports Premier League from 7 pm.

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Luxembourg v Ireland will kick off at 19:45 on Sunday 14th November in Stade de Luxembourg. For those unable to travel, the match will be shown live on RTE 2 and RTE Player.

Luxembourg come into this game now ranked 97th in the FIFA World Rankings. Manager Luc Holtz will be with his team, this has been one of the most successful campaigns for their nation.

With the help of their Ligue 1 striker Gerson Rodrigues and Bundesliga midfielder Leandro Barreiro, they currently sit in third place after seven points. Although they are not close to the qualification places, they have managed three victories in the group stage.

They most recently beat Azerbaijan comfortably 3-1 away in Baku on Friday. Rodrigues made a man of the match performance, scoring two goals.

Ireland is now ranked at 51st in the FIFA World Ranking. After a poor start to the campaign, Stephen Kenny has turned his team’s performances around. After a 0-0 stalemate in Dublin to Portugal, the Boys in Green are unbeaten in five matches and only one loss in nine.

Kenny will want another strong performance from star players Callum Robinson and Chiedozie Ogbene if they want to push on from their fourth-place rank in the World Cup group stage.

These two small nations in the football world have only faced each other once before. Back in March, Luxembourg shocked Dublin as they beat a poor Irish team 1-0 in Aviva Stadium. This game will decide who finishes third in the table and Kenny will want a win to cap off his campaign.

Gerson Rodrigues Great Goal (bicycle kick) for Luxembourg vs Azerbaijan pic.twitter.com/YAohrvqbfE

— foteus (@nothing76367051) November 12, 2021

Luxembourg v Ireland Probable Starting Teams

Luxembourg

Formation

4-4-2

Probable Starting 11

Moris (GK), Pinto, Carlson, Chanot, Malget, Thill, Barreiro, Martins, Sinani. Rodrigues, Borges.

Injuries / Suspensions

Jans (Foot)

Ireland

Formation

3-4-2-1

Probable Starting 11

Kelleher (GK), Egan, Duffy, Collins, Knight, Cullin, Keane, Doherty, Ogbene, Idah, Robinson.

Injuries / Suspensions

Omobamidele (Achilles tendon), Molumby (Hamstring), Connolly (Foot)

To hear herself say "I really enjoyed that" leaving an Ireland game for the first time means a lot. The atmosphere and the football we're playing, it's such an exciting time for Irish football. Can't wait to bring her to more @CiaraLennon__ #InKingKennyWeTrust pic.twitter.com/1qi96Kbnae

— Kieran Burke (@Kieran_B_Sport) November 12, 2021

Luxembourg v Ireland Match Betting

Luxembourg to win: 13/5

Draw: 2/1

Ireland to win: 23/20

Score Prediction

Although I am blinded by patriotism, this seems like a great chance for Ireland to claim their second win of the group. The Irishmen are in strong form and are looking more comfortable in front of the goal.

Expect the game to end 2-0 to Ireland, ending the campaign on a high.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Shane Duffy taking flight pic.twitter.com/HKer9hPlBg

— B/R Football (@brfootball) November 11, 2021

To read more from this writer, click here.

And to read more in-depth and up-to-date Ireland and international club football news, click here.

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Ireland v Portugal will kick off at 19:45 on Thursday 11th November in the Aviva Stadium.

Most of the tickets for this game were sold out within minutes of them being on sale online. For those who could not claim a ticket, the match will also be shown live on RTE 2 and RTE player with coverage starting at 19:00.

Stephen Kenny has changed Ireland’s fortunes in recent months. After a poor start to his campaign, they are now unbeaten four games and have shown real promise in front of goal.

The Boys in Green still sit in fourth place in the group behind Luxembourg and are unable to qualify from the group. After this tie with Portugal, they will travel to the small nation of Luxembourg for what seems like a more important game for Kenny’s regime.

If Kenny thought Ireland’s form was good then Fernando Santos has been making a monstrous squad out of Portugal. Since being knocked out of Euro 2020 to Belgium, they have won five games on the bounce, keeping three clean sheets.

The World number eight-country currently sit in second place in the World Cup qualification group. They only sit one point off Serbia but have a single game in hand. Even though the Portuguese will want to win against Ireland, they will keep one eye on their fixture against the Serbians this Sunday in Lisbon.

Ireland have very few opportunities to play Ronaldo and Portugal, having only faced them twice in the last 10 years. Both times, the Portuguese squad came out on top, first 5-1 in 2014, and most recently they made a 2-1 comeback at the start of September.

The amazing sequence of passes that led to Callum Robinson's hattrick goal

The Irish evolution #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/OCLWaUp70R

— Kenny's Kids (@KennysKids) October 14, 2021

Ireland v Portugal Probable Starting Teams

Ireland

Formation

5-3-2

Probable Starting 11

Bazunu (GK), Doherty, Egan, Duffy, Omobamidele, Coleman, Hendrick, Cullen, Knight, Idah, Robinson.

Injuries / Suspensions

Collins (Muscle injury), O’Shea (Knee), Connolly (Heel)

Portugal

Formation

4-3-3

Probable Starting 11

Patricio (GK), Mendes, Dias, Pepe, Semedo, Palhinha, Neves, Fernandes, Rafa, Silva, Ronaldo.

Injuries / Suspensions

Mario (Back)

Matija Nastasic (Serbia player):

Cristiano Ronaldo in our next match against Portugal? "Honestly, I don't expect Cristiano Ronaldo to be more or less excited. He's one of those players who always gets excited in every match, so I think he's no different in this match." pic.twitter.com/xF1JtMKRsf

— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) November 10, 2021

Ireland v Portugal Match Betting

Ireland to win: 9/1

Draw: 15/4

Portugal to win: 3/10

Score Prediction

It would feel blasphemous to bet against the Boys in Green but it would be a major shock to see Kenny’s young men overcome the world-class side aiming to top this qualifying group. Recent form at least shows that Ireland will be spirited and give Ronaldo’s team a real go for it.

Expect the game to end 2-1 to Portugal.

Only two days until Cristiano Ronaldo plays in the Aviva Stadium How can Stephen Kenny's team stop the Portugal captain? pic.twitter.com/mPbYYaDj2S

— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) November 9, 2021

To read more from this writer, click here.

And to read more in-depth and up-to-date Ireland and international football news, click here.

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Northern Ireland fell to Switzerland last time out in a 2-0 defeat which saw left-back Jamal Lewis receive his marching orders in a controversial fashion with a second yellow card in the first half for time-wasting.

The side were dominated on the ball and created very little against a Swiss side that took 27 shots.

Bulgaria are looking to bounce back from shock 3-1 loss to Lithuania in Vilnius – the Green and White Army won 4-1 on their travels to the Eastern European country.

The two teams are level on points in Group C and Ian Baraclough’s away side will be hoping to get some breathing room in third.

Bulgaria sit in fourth on a worse goal difference of -5, while Steven Davis and co. benefit from their -1 differential.

Northern Ireland were held to a goalless draw by Bulgaria in Belfast in March and another close encounter is expected on Tuesday night.

Jonny Evans has not joined the squad due to an illness on top of his long-standing foot injury that he suffered in the FA Cup final.

Bulgaria, on the other hands, have all players at their disposal for the World Cup qualifier clash.

Both sides are hoping to earn their second win of the campaign and lead the race for third place.

A win will all but eliminate the loser – Switzerland play Lithuania this evening.

Probable Lineups

Bulgaria – last match (4-4-2): Lukov; Bozhikov, Hristov, Hristov, Antov; Despotev, Vitanov, Malinov, Nedelev; Iliev, Yomov.

Northern Ireland (5-4-1): Peacock-Farrell; Bradley, Ballard, Cathcart, Flanagan, Ferguson; Dallas, Davis, Magennis, Saville; Washington.

Odds

Bulgaria 7/4

Draw 15/8

Northern Ireland 9/5

Where To Watch

The game will kick-off at 7:45 pm and will be available to watch live on Sky Sports Football with coverage starting at 7:30 pm.

The post Bulgaria v Northern Ireland – Preview, Team News, Odds, Where To Watch appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

The 23-year old defender has been called up in place of Swansea City defender Ryan Manning who had to withdraw from the squad with injury.

Scales linked up with the squad before departure to Baku, Azerbaijan on Wednesday and will be available for the FIFA 2022 World Cup qualifier on Saturday, October 9 as well as the international friendly against Qatar on Tuesday, October 12.

Ireland manager Stephen Kenny has also spoken in a press conference about the recent news that striker Callum Robinson has chosen not to be vaccinated for the Covid-19 virus.

When asked if he would drop the player due to this, Kenny thought that it would be ‘radical’ and said he would not at this time.

Speaking to the press Robinson, explained his decision: “It’s obviously annoying that I’ve caught it twice but I haven’t been vaccinated. Further down the line I could change my mind and want to do it, but at this moment in time I haven’t been vaccinated.”

"Everyone has that choice."

Callum Robinson has revealed he has not yet been vaccinated against COVID 19. pic.twitter.com/jc3DldzBsk

— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 6, 2021

Republic of Ireland Squad v Azerbaijan / v Qatar

Goalkeepers: Gavin Bazunu (Portsmouth, on loan from Manchester City), Caoimhin Kelleher (Liverpool), Mark Travers (AFC Bournemouth).

Defenders: Matt Doherty (Tottenham Hotspur), Cyrus Christie (Fulham), Shane Duffy (Brighton and Hove Albion), John Egan (Sheffield United), Enda Stevens (Sheffield United), James McClean (Wigan Athletic), Andrew Omobamidele (Norwich City), Nathan Collins (Burnley), Liam Scales (Celtic).

Midfielders: Josh Cullen (Anderlecht), Jeff Hendrick (Newcastle United), Conor Hourihane (Aston Villa), Harry Arter (Nottingham Forest), Jamie McGrath (St. Mirren), Jason Knight (Derby County).

Attackers: Callum Robinson (West Bromwich Albion), Aaron Connolly (Brighton and Hove Albion), James Collins (Cardiff City), Daryl Horgan (Wycombe Wanderers), Adam Idah (Norwich City), Troy Parrott (MK Dons, on loan from Tottenham Hotspur), Will Keane (Wigan Athletic), Chiedozie Ogbene (Rotherham United).

Liam Scales called up to the Ireland squad. What a player pic.twitter.com/36UGZ1EFVQ

— Conor (@srfconor) October 7, 2021

To read more in-depth and up-to-date Ireland and international football news, click here.

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The Three Lions will have to do without the Leeds midfielder due to a calf strain. Phillips suffered the injury in his club’s 1-0 victory over Watford at the weekend.

He has now been replaced with James Ward-Prowse in English training. This will be a great improvement for the Southampton man’s week after he scored and was shown a red card in their 3-1 loss to Chelsea.

Kalvin Phillips is not the only Leeds player that will miss international duty with Patrick Bamford unable for selection with an ankle injury. Roma striker Tammy Abraham has been drafted in as a backup to Harry Kane.

Southgate will still have a very strong squad to play in this international break. They will first face Andorra away at 19:45 on Saturday 9th October. Three days later they will play Hungary at 19:45 in Wembley. Both matches will be shown on Sky Sports.

James Ward-Prowse has been added to the England squad, replacing Kalvin Phillips.

Phillips has a minor calf issue but is not expected to miss any of Leeds' upcoming fixtures. [The Athletic] pic.twitter.com/1ZPh4xQe1V

— LUFCMOT (@LUFCMOTcom) October 5, 2021

The Three Lions can cope but this may be more trouble for Bielsa and Leeds

Although England will be strong, this injury will be more of a worry to Leeds United fans. The Whites only claimed their first league win of the season on Sunday and are now without some of their starting players.

Marcelo Bielsa was lucky to have a Bamford replacement with Rodrigo able to play the position but he will not have as many choices for Phillips.

Adam Forshaw has spent much of the last two seasons on the injury table and is currently out for two more weeks with a hamstring strain. Northern Irish player, Stuart Dallas is also suffering from a knock.

If Phillips is not right to play, then the team may need to rely on Mateusz Klich to fill in.

Leeds fans should not worry too much presently with the club having a week’s break. Their next match is away to Southampton at 15:00 on Saturday, 16th October.

Leeds United head coach Marcelo Bielsa admires Kalvin Phillips for his conduct amidst reported interest from Premier League rivals Man Utd. #lufc pic.twitter.com/7GPfvEs10A

— Adam Pope (@apopey) September 30, 2021

To read more in-depth and up-to-date Premier League and international football news, click here.

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The Ireland boss has named some surprises in the 26 man squad as well as handing out possible first senior caps to some players.

Captain Seamus Coleman will miss out on the matches due to a hamstring injury he sustained while playing for Everton. He has been replaced in the squad with young defender Nathan Collins who moved to Burnley this season but is yet to make an appearance.

Fulham defender Cyrus Christie is also named in the squad mainly due to the injury of West Brom centre half Dara O’Shea. Celtic’s Liam Scales was unlucky not to get a call up after recent showings in the Scottish Premiership.

Midfielders Jason Molumby and Alan Browne have also not been included in this November international’s squad.

Wigan Athletic striker Will Keane has received his first international call-up to Ireland having scored four goals in the opening nine matches of the League One season.

Full squad announcement here #Ireland #football #soccer pic.twitter.com/zmOSNS6BcV

— Will Dalton (@WillDalton01) September 30, 2021

Ireland Men’s National Team 26 man squad

Goalkeepers: Gavin Bazunu (Portsmouth FC), Caoimhin Kelleher (Liverpool FC), Mark Travers (AFC Bournemouth)

Defenders: Matt Doherty (Tottenham Hotspur), Cyrus Christie (Fulham FC), Shane Duffy (Brighton & Hove Albion), John Egan (Sheffield United), Enda Stevens (Sheffield United), James McClean (Wigan Athletic), Ryan Manning (Swansea FC), Andrew Omabamidele (Norwich City), Nathan Collins (Burnley)

Midfielders: Conor Hourihane (Sheffield United), Josh Cullen (Anderlecht), Jeff Hendrick (Newcastle United), Jason Knight (Derby City), Jamie McGrath (St Mirren), Harry Arter (Charlton Athletic)

Forwards: Callum Robinson (West Bromich Albion), Aaron Connolly (Brighton & Hove Albion), James Collins (Cardiff City), Daryl Horgan (Wycombe Wanderers), Adam Idah (Norwich City), Troy Parrott (MK Dons), Will Keane (Wigan Athletic), Chiedozie Ogbene (Rotherham United)

This morning on Soccer AM, Robbie Keane proved he is still Ireland's best strikerpic.twitter.com/PdqLEH1zG1

— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) September 11, 2021

Ireland will play Azerbaijan first in a World Cup qualifier. The match kicks of at 17:00 on Saturday 9th October in Tel Aviv.

They will then return home to play World Cup hosts Qatar in a friendly. That game starts at 19:45 on Tuesday 12th October.

To read more in-depth and up-to-date Ireland and international football news, click here.

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A Haris Seferovic penalty miss in the first half was the highlight of the fixture as the sides failed to find a breakthrough on the night.

It was Northern Ireland goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell’s second save in as many qualification games after denying Lithuania a goal from the spot last week.

The on-loan Sheffield Wednesday keeper was the hero on the night for Ian Baraclough’s side as they held on for a draw against the UEFA Euro 2020 quarter-finalists.

Switzerland dominated possession on a night that saw a near-capacity crowd return to the Belfast stadium.

However, the effect of the crowd did help to put pressure on the visitors throughout the match.

Swiss midfielder Fabian Frei picked up an early yellow card and earning himself a suspension after strong pressing from the home team.

Northern Ireland forward Shane Lavery found himself in clean air and looked set to score but could not provide the finishing touch after fashioning space for a shot.

However, Lavery and strike partner Conor Washington, although unable to give their side a goal, looked just as dangerous as they did against Lithuania.

The hosts’ sparkle soon faded as right-back Michael Smith was judged to have brought left winger Ruben Vargas down inside the box and a penalty was given.

However, number nine Haris Seferovic fluffed his lines from 12-yards out and Peacock-Farrell denied Murat Yakin’s Swiss side a goal – they have yet to score in a competitive game (and win a competitive game) under their new manager.

Liverpool full-back Connor Bradley impressed upon his introduction after assisting Shane Ferguson’s winner against Estonia at the weekend.

Baraclough’s Northern Ireland were defensively resilient with a noisy crowd behind them all the way but lacked the end product needed to collect all three points, while Switzerland failed to break them down and will rue a missed penalty.

Both sides will face each other again in the first game of the October international window at the Stade de Geneve in Switzerland on Saturday, October 9.

Northern Ireland (3-5-2): Peacock-Farrell; Ballard, Cathcart, Brown; Smith, McCann, Davis (C), Thompson, Lewis; Washington, Lavery.

Subs: Bradley, Flanagan, Saville, McGinn, Lafferty, Ferguson, Carson, Charles, Jones, White, McCalmont, Hazard.

Switzerland (4-3-3): Sommer (C); Widmer, Akanji, Elvedi, Rodriguez; Freuler, Frei, Zakaria; Vargas, Seferovic, Fassnacht.

Subs: Garcia, Zeqiri, Steffen, Mvogo, Zuber, Sow, Lauper, Lotomba, Aebischer, Kobel, Schar, Zesiger.

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Ian Baraclough’s side sit fourth in the Group C table, three points off Switzerland who are in second – a draw will take Northern Ireland up to third and a win will propel them to second in the table.

Switzerland need a win to keep the pressure on group leaders and European champions Italy, who are four points ahead of Xhaka and co. with two more games played.

The Swiss are still unbeaten in the group and will look to extend that streak with a result against the Green And White Army.

However, Northern Ireland will have the advantage of fans on their side at the Belfast venue.

Changes are expected to be made to the Northern Ireland that beat Estonia in a friendly at the weekend thanks to a Shane Ferguson screamer.

They will still be without Leicester City’s Jonny Evans as he continues to recover from a foot injury.

Winger Jordan Jones is suspended and will miss the clash against Switzerland as a result.

Goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell will retain his starting position while the duo of Shane Lavery and Conor Washington is expected to appear.

Switzerland will have every player in their squad at their disposal for the upcoming match.

However, four of their players picked up a yellow in the draw against Italy on Sunday and will need to tread carefully to avoid suspension.

Predicted Lineups

Northern Ireland (3-5-2): Peacock-Farrell; Ballard, Cathcart, Brown; Smith, McCann, Davis (C), Thompson, Lewis; Washington, Lavery.

Subs: Bradley, Flanagan, Saville, McGinn, Lafferty, Ferguson, Carson, Charles, Jones, White, McCalmont, Hazard.

Switzerland (4-3-3): Sommer; Widmer, Akanji, Elvedi, Rodriguez; Freuler, Frei, Zakaria; Vargas, Seferovic, Fassnacht.

Subs: Garcia, Zeqiri, Steffen, Mvogo, Zuber, Sow, Lauper, Lotomba, Aebischer, Kobel, Schar, Zesiger.

Odds

Northern Ireland 5/1

Draw 11/4

Switzerland 4/7

Where To Watch

The match will kick-off at 7:45 pm and will be available to watch on Sky Sports Football with coverage starting at 7 pm.

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The Rotherham United star came off the bench for his 50th cap for Northern Ireland and added to the occasion with a superb strike from 30 yards out.

The bullet flew past Estonian goalkeeper Matvei Igonen, who could not stop the inevitable.

The goal lit up an otherwise dull fixture between the two sides and puts Northern Ireland on two wins from two in the September international window thus far, with three wins in their last four.

Head coach Ian Baraclough made nine changes to the side that ran out 4-1 winners in an eventful fixture in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius on Thursday.

Full-backs against Estonia, Paddy McNair and Jamal Lewis, were the only survivors from the national side’s previous fixture.

The squad still included experienced individuals with Niall McGinn captain on the night and Kyle Lafferty leading the line for the Green And White Army.

Estonia started the strongest as the hosts looked to gain control of the game early on but Northern Ireland got to grips with the tempo and started to put pressure on after a while.

Kyle Lafferty came closest to breaking the deadlock for the visitors but could not put the ball past the 24-year-old Igonen.

Estonia made four changes for the second half and started the half the stronger of the two teams once again.

Baraclough made changes to counter this, taking off Lafferty and Lewis for Dion Charles and Ferguson.

Goalkeeper Trevor Carson was also replaced on the hour mark, with Conor Hazard taking his place to get 30 more minutes of international football under his belt.

Liverpool defender Conor Bradley also came on for some game time in place of Liam Donnelly.

Ferguson’s beautiful hit twelve minutes after Bradley’s substitution found the top corner of the Estonian net after the 18-year-old from Castlederg teed him up.

Hazard pulled off an impressive save to deny substitute Henri Anier, who came close several times and Northern Ireland stayed in the lead until the final whistle.

Baraclough’s side will face Switzerland on Wednesday, September 8 in their third and final game of the month – a second World Cup Qualifier of the window.

Estonia (3-1-4-2): Igonen; Luuka, Kusk, Paskotski; Kreida (Mets 45); Lilander (Puri 45), Sinyavskiy (Kirss 80), Poom, Vassiljev (C) (Kait 45); Sappinen (Anier 45), Sorga (Zenjov 76).

Northern Ireland (4-2-3-1): Carson (Hazard 63); McNair, Flanagan, Brown, Lewis (Ferguson 55); Donnelly (Bradley 63), McCalmont; Whyte, Jones, McGinn (C); Lafferty (Charles 55).

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