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Greece v Ireland
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Competition: Euro 2024 Qualifiers
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Watch Live: Viaplay Xtra
The first-ever competitive game between Greece and the Republic of Ireland is scheduled to take place on Friday, June 16, at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens. This upcoming clash between the two sides provides us with a first-class opportunity to put together some Greece v Republic of Ireland bet builder tips.
Having faced each other just thrice, Greece and Ireland are pushing for a top-two spot in the UEFA Euro Qualifiers in their bid to qualify for the 2024 European Championship. This means that when making Greece vs the Republic of Ireland bet builder predictions, we should keep in mind that this might be a crucial six-pointer for the two teams.
Surprisingly, Greece and Ireland have never locked horns in a competitive game in the past. Ireland haven’t managed to score a single goal against Greece, who secured two 1-0 wins and a 0-0 draw in their three friendlies against their upcoming opponents.
The two sides have played one 2024 UEFA European Champions qualifying duel each thus far. Greece cruised past Gibraltar with a 3-0 away victory, while Ireland lost 1-0 to France on home soil back in March. Hence, this encounter is of great importance for both sides, as they compete for one of the two top spots in a group that features strong sides France and the Netherlands.
The fact that both teams need all three points here has helped put together a solid Greece vs Republic of Ireland bet builder at odds of 3.46, which is detailed below.
If you’re interested in placing a bet on Friday’s match, you can consider following the Greece vs Republic of Ireland bet builder tips below. We have placed our bet on Paddy Power, and you can do the same by signing up through the offer provided. By doing so, not only will you gain access to the Greece v the Republic of Ireland bet builder, but even if your bet loses, your entire stake will be refunded.
Greece coach Gus Poyet criticised for squad selection
Despite having led Greece to top spot in League C’s Group 2 in the Nations League after recording five wins in six games, Poyet has been at the receiving end of criticism after announcing the squad to face Ireland and France in the June international break.
Poyet decided against calling up Olympiacos playmaker Kostas Fortounis, who recorded 14 goal contributions in 25 Greek Super League games last season. His decision raised some eyebrows, but Poyet stressed that it was a technical decision, one which he didn’t hesitate to explain.
WIf we were to call up Fortounis we would have to change the system to 4-2-3-1 so that he would fit in better.”
Gus Poyet on not calling up talisman Kostas Fortounis
“If we were to call up Fortounis we would have to change the system to 4-2-3-1 so that he would fit in better,” Poyet noted.
“For me, [captain Anastasios] Bakasetas is untouchable, seeing the goals he has scored. Fortounis was disappointed. It was the hardest call I had to make but even two hours of explaining to him wouldn’t change the decision.”
Indeed, no active Greek international has scored more goals for the national team than Bakasetas, who has registered 11 in 55 appearances, having netted nine in his last 18 matches.
For me, [captain Anastasios] Bakasetas is untouchable, seeing the goals he has scored. Fortounis was disappointed. It was the hardest call I had to make but even two hours of explaining to him wouldn’t change the decision.”
Poyet on the importance of captain Anastasios Baslasetas
Meanwhile, Poyet was also blasted after announcing a squad list that didn’t include Eredivisie top scorer Anastasios Douvikas, who netted 20 league goals for FC Utrecht in 2022/23. Yet, after Fotis Ioannidis picked up an injury in training earlier this week, Douvikas has been called up to provide Poyet an extra option in attack.
Another peculiar fact is that this will be Greece’s first-ever competitive game at AEK Athens’ new stadium, Agia Sophia. The 32,500 all-seater ground will certainly provide Greece with a better atmosphere than the cold, lifeless OAKA stadium, though no more than 15,000 fans are expected to attend the game, many blaming high ticket prices for the expected low attendance numbers.
Greece team news
Replacing Ioannidis with Douvikas has been Poyet’s only forced change so far. In fact, none of the three players who are doubtful were expected to start against Ireland. Dimitris Giannoulis is a doubt due to illness, while Andreas Bouchalakis and Sotiris Alexandropoulos are recovering from injuries and are both expected to be on the bench on Friday.
Benfica’s starting goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos is expected to take his place between the posts and behind a back-four that should consist of George Baldock, Pantelis Chatzidiakos, Konstantinos Mavropanos, and Kostas Tsimikas.
Bakasetas should start in midfield alongside Manolis Siopis and Petros Mantalos. The former two netted one goal each against Gibraltar, while Mantalos recorded an assist.
Georgios Masouras and Dimitris Limnios are expected to start on the flanks, while Poyet will decide whether to field Vangelis Pavlidis, who scored 22 goals in 40 games with AZ Alkmaar across all competitions or Giorgos Giakoumakis, who has netted 10 times in 14 matches with MLS side Atlanta United.
Republic of Ireland in pursuit of ‘historic’ away victory
Ireland kicked off the 2024 Euro Qualifiers with a narrow defeat to France on home soil. This means that they have travelled to Greece in their bid to secure their first points in the group. They are aware that beating a Greek side that lost just one of their last 15 matches will not be an easy task, but coach Stephen Kenny is confident that his team have what it takes to grab all three points at the Agia Sophia Stadium.
Kenny didn’t hesitate to list a few teams, such as Malta, Albania, Cyprus, and Georgia, that Ireland defeated on the road before qualifying for major tournaments in the past and asked for a historic victory in Greece.
“We want to create a narrative in the group to have that big, significant away win,” Kenny noted. “To have that historic away win is important, when you look through history, in the years we qualified for three European Championships and three World Cups. They are not major nations but they were significant away wins. The idea was to show the players that it might be the first goal of their international career. But it could be a significant away goal, a big away win that can give us the opportunity to qualify. That is the mindset of the group because we still have a lot of young players. So to get that historical away win in Greece would be special for them all.”
We want to create a narrative in the group to have that big, significant away win.”
Ireland coach Stephen Kenny on getting Ireland off the mark in Athens
It has to be noted that out of Kenny’s four competitive victories, two have been achieved away from home. However, the significance of these wins was diminished as they occurred when they were already out of contention for the 2022 World Cup.
Nevertheless, their performance in away games is somewhat unsatisfactory, as they have emerged victorious in only two out of their previous ten away matches during the qualifiers over the past nine years. Notably, these two victories were against a weak Gibraltar side.
Republic of Ireland team news
Kenny didn’t call up Chiedozie Ogbene, who is currently recovering from a hamstring injury. Yet, Alan Browne and Jeff Hendrick have both been included in the 25-man squad after recovering from knocks.
The Republic of Ireland coach decided to drop experienced players Robbie Brady, Connor Hourihane, Shane Duffy, and Enda Stevens. This means that he will be managing a rather young, prodigious squad, one which includes talented Brighton & Hove Albion striker Evan Ferguson, who scored six Premier League goals last season and netted his first Ireland goal in a 3-2 win over Latvia back in March.
Ferguson is expected to start upfront alongside either Michael Obafemi or Adam Idah in a 3-5-2 formation, one which forced France to produce just a couple of quality chances in Ireland’s home defeat during the last international break.
Greece v Republic of Ireland Cheat Sheet
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Greece v Republic of Ireland bet builder tips
Greece v Republic of Ireland
Kick Off: 19:45
Competition: Euro 2024 Qualifier
Watch Live: Viaplay Xtra
Selection: 1 of 3
Prediction: Under 2.5 goals
Odds: 1.50
Having fielded the same back-four consisting of Baldock, Chatzidiakos, Mavropanos, and Tsimikas, Greece have conceded just two goals in their last seven competitive games. In fact, no goalkeeper managed to keep more clean sheets than Vlachodimos (4) in the previous Nations League edition. Poyet has helped his team boost their confidence by being compact at the back and they are expected to showcase their defensive solidity again against Ireland.
As for the visitors, their back-three managed to contain France’s world-class forwards in Dublin and they feel confident that they can do the same in Athens too. Making a Greece vs Republic of Ireland bet builder predictions, we do not expect an open game considering there are lots at stake on Friday, as a potential defeat may end one of the two teams’ hopes of securing a top-two spot.
Selection: 2 of 3
Prediction: Over 1.5 Ireland cards
Odds: 1.30
Both Greece and Ireland boast talented forwards such as Giakoumakis, Pavlidis, Ferguson, and Idah, all of whom could cause problems for the opposition’s defence. In fact, no MLS player has scored more times than Giakoumakis this season and Pavlidis has shined in the Dutch league due to his attacking prowess. Containing Greek attackers might be a challenging task for Ireland’s defenders and it shouldn’t be ruled out that the visitors could opt for rough challenges in order to stop Greece’s attacks.
In fact, Ireland have recorded more than 1.5 yellow cards in eight of their last nine competitive games, while Greece forced their opponents to more than 1.5 cards in four of their six Nations League matches. Meanwhile, it has to be noted that referee Harald Lechner, who’ll be in charge on Friday, has averaged 3.4 yellow cards per match in the 34 games he has officiated in 2022/23.
Selection: 3 of 3
Prediction: Anastasios Bakasetas to have 1+ shot on target
Odds: 1.57
Having registered at least one shot on target in each of his last seven competitive appearances for Greece, Bakasetas offers his team an extra attacking threat. As mentioned above, no active Greek international has scored more times (11) than the experienced attacking midfielder, who produced an average of three shots per game for Greece in the Nations League.
Poyet has stressed that Bakasetas is an important cog for this team, also being the player taking penalties and direct free-kicks, especially in Fortounis’ absence. The Greece captain, who recorded 2.7 goal attempts and one shot on target per game for Trabzonspor last season, will definitely try to threaten the opposition with his powerful strike, which makes this Greece bet builder a value bet.
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