Rep. Of Ireland v Slovakia Betting Preview

It’s a pivotal match for the Republic of Ireland this Friday as they meet Slovakia at the Aviva Stadium. With a trip to Russia just a few days later, anything less than three points will be a major setback to hopes of qualifying for the European Championship, a feat last accomplished in 1988.

Ireland are obviously favourites, and with a recent record of four wins and a draw against the Slovakians, it’s well deserved.  It’s well known that Ireland are not the most adventurous team, but the flipside to this is a tremendous defensive record recently, with a host of clean sheets kept.  It’s hard to see Slovakia getting the better of a tough Irish backline that has improved immensely since the teams last played in October 2010, and betting the under of 2.5 goals at 4/7 is a good shout.

That’s because Ireland will never blow a team away with attacking skill, and a 0-0 halftime score with a 1-0 Irish win looks appealing at 7/1.  As for goalscorers, Shane Long has made an impressive start since signing with West Brom and has also caused problems for defences with his physicality in his short international career so far.  You can tab him to score anytime for a 1-0 win at 15/1.