Ireland vs Finland: betting odds 15 Nov 2024

The 5th round match of the Nations League between the national teams of Ireland and Finland in Group 2 of League B will take place on November 14 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Ireland vs Finland: prediction and betting odds, statistics.

Referee: Harm Osters (Germany)

Matches – 11 (International meetings, 2023–2024);

Yellow/red cards shown – 58;

Average yellow/red cards per match – 5.3;

Red cards shown – 3;

Fouls per match on average – 22;

Penalties – 27%.

Predicted line-ups for the Ireland vs Finland match

The Republic of Ireland (3-5-1-1): Caoimhin Kelleher – Dara O'Shea, Liam Scales, Nathan Collins – Callum O'Dowda, Josh Cullen, Sammie Szmodics, Jason Knight, Casey McaTeer – Finn Azaz – Evan Ferguson.

Finland (4-3-3): Lukas Hradecky – Jere Uronen, Arttu Hoskonen, Nikolai Alho, Robert Ivanov – Rasmus Schuller, Kaan Kairinen, Glen Kamara – Robin Lod, Joel Pohjanpalo, Daniel O'Shaughnessy.

The Republic of Ireland

Managed by Heimir Hallgrimsson, after 4 rounds the team has secured just one victory, which came against Finland (2:1). In the other three encounters, the team suffered defeats, each with a clean sheet. In the previous round, the Irish lost to Greece (0:2) and almost lost any chance of competing for the top two spots in the quartet. To still finish in second place, Ireland needs two wins, including a substantial victory over England. Moreover, the English must lose all their remaining matches. To avoid relegation to League C, the Irish simply need to avoid defeat in the upcoming match.

• At least two goals have been scored in eight of Ireland's previous Nations League matches.
• The number '2' has appeared in the final score in six of the team's last matches in this tournament.
• In 9 out of 10 of Ireland's previous home encounters in the Nations League, at least one team failed to score.

Finland

The Finns have lost all four matches in the current Nations League. In September, the team suffered away defeats with a clean sheet against Greece (0:3) and England (0:2), and in October, they lost at home to Ireland (1:2) and England (1:3). The team has already lost any chance of finishing in the top two but still has the opportunity to fight to stay in League B. For this, Finland needs a victory over Ireland, preferably by a two-goal margin, so that in the event of equal points at the end of the group stage, they have the advantage over their opponent based on head-to-head meetings.

• Two or more goals have been scored in seven of Finland's previous matches in this tournament.
• Finland's uncompromising away streak in the Nations League consists of 11 matches (4 wins and 7 losses).
• The team has conceded the first goal in 5 out of the last 6 away encounters in the Nations League.

Ireland vs Finland: match prediction

A meeting of the group 2 underdogs. The fate of the last place in the quartet will be decided in this head-to-head confrontation. The third position will not secure a place in League B, but there will still be a chance to fight for it against one of the representatives of League C who finishes second in their group. The Irish have better chances to avoid direct relegation, especially since they won in Finland.

With such an advantage, the hosts, in my opinion, will aim to play for at least a draw, acting extremely cautiously in defense. Ireland knows how to 'dry out' matches. In 8 out of their last 10 home games in the Nations League, no more than two goals were scored, and in those eight matches, the Irish themselves did not score. Moreover, only in 3 out of these 10 encounters did Ireland's opponents manage to score more than once.

Meanwhile, Finland in their last 11 away Nations League matches has failed to score five times, scored a single goal three times, and managed to score twice only three times. Therefore, I assume that the match will be low-scoring. There may be many fouls and warnings, but the Irish will not delight with goals and will not allow the Finns to do so either. My prediction is for "Under 2.5 Goals"