Luxembourg v Republic of Ireland betting tips: Greens hope to end on a high
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Luxembourg v Ireland betting tips
Republic of Ireland wrap up their World Cup qualifying campaign in Luxembourg where victory would cement third spot in Group A.
Stephen Kenny’s side were never in the running to qualify after a poor start to the group stage but they continue to show signs of improvement having held a weakened Portugal team to a goalless draw in Dublin on Thursday.
The men in green are 23/20 favourites to win Sunday’s match despite losing to the same opponents in March, so let’s look at some of the options in our Luxembourg v Ireland betting tips.
Match Odds
Luxembourg tightened their grip on third spot with a 3-1 win against 10-man Azerbaijan on Thursday, although the result was only settled by Gerson Rodrigues’ second goal of the game in stoppage time.
Despite playing 70 minutes of the game with just 10 men, the hosts conceded their first goal midway through the second half and threatened to nick a point when Azer Salahli struck in the closing stages to reduce the arrears.
Rodrigues’ powerful 25-yard drive five minutes from time gave Luxembourg a deserved 1-0 win almost eight months ago and they are 27/10 to repeat that victory or 21/10 to draw.
Player of the Match | Callum Robinson
Another superb performance from our CR7 to claim the @carlsberg Player of the Match award#COYBIG | #WeAreOne | #IRLPOR pic.twitter.com/QizVqGnON9
— FAIreland ⚽️🇮🇪 (@FAIreland) November 11, 2021
Ireland have scored and conceded eight times during the group phase, so we should not expect a thriller as we go 1/2 on under 2.5 goals or it’s 5/4 on another goalless opening 45 minutes.
However, Kenny’s men were leading at the break in all three trips to Serbia, Portugal and Azerbaijan, so we go 19/10 on the visitors to win the first half or 3/1 by a 1-0 scoreline in our Luxembourg v Ireland betting tips as it was against the first two nations mentioned above.
The Republic looked the most likely to break the deadlock once Felipe had been sent off for a second yellow card eight minutes from time, so against inferior opponents the visitors look an interesting option at 11/4 to win either 1-0 or 2-0 bearing in mind they have kept three successive clean sheets.
Talking Tactics
Kenny deployed three at the back once again in a 3-4-3 formation on Thursday in which Callum Robinson spearheaded the attack flanked by Chiedozie Ogbenie and Jamie McGrath, with Josh Cullen and Jeff Hendrick in the heart of midfield.
Right-back Seamus Coleman, who had described the defeat by Luxembourg as “embarrassing” and the “worst night” of his international career, kept Cristiano Ronaldo relatively quiet down his side, so he is likely to accompany Shane Duffy and John Egan in defence.
Luc Holtz, Luxembourg’s national coach for the last 11 years, went with a 4-1-4-1 in Dublin where Rodrigues played on the left wing, but the Dynamo Kiev man was the sole striker in a 4-5-1 in Baku and his two goals suggest that is where he will start on Sunday.
Goalscorer Odds
Rodrigues is the favourite in the Luxembourg contingent to break the deadlock at 6/1 or 13/5 to get on the scoresheet, but Olivier Thill also looks dangerous and can be backed at 7/2 to find the net as he did in Serbia.
Robinson is viewed as the most likely to grab the game’s opener at 9/2 or 2/1 in the any-time market, while Duffy looks an interesting option at 11/2 to score as he did in rescuing a draw against Azerbaijan two months ago.
Egan gave the Republic a shock lead in Portugal and can be backed at 14/1 and 13/2 in the two options as one of our Luxembourg v Ireland betting tips.
Match Info
Where: Stade de Luxembourg
When: 19:45, Sunday 14th November
How to watch: Sky Sports
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
