Czech Republic vs Ireland LIVE: Team news and latest updates ahead of crucial World Cup play-off semi-final | OneFootball

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How Parrott's Ireland are taking the mentality and momentum of Budapest to Prague and maybe the World Cup

The Republic of Ireland travel to Prague to face the Czech Republic tonight knowing they could move within one match of elusive World Cup qualification.

Ireland reached the play-offs in soul-stirring fashion in November, following up a memorable win over Portugal with late drama in Hungary, which saw Troy Parrott net a stoppage-time winner in Budapest to spark incredible scenes of celebration.

The result secured a second-place finish and a play-off spot for Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side, who have not played at a World Cup finals since 2002.

But to end that 24-year wait for qualification, they will first need to go through Czech Republic in enemy territory, which will earn them a finale showdown against either Denmark or North Macedonia in front of a rabid Dublin crowd on Tuesday 31 March.

How will Ireland prepare for Czech Republic?

“We’re not overly-analysing them,” Heimir Hallgrimsson admitted.

“We are just focusing on ourselves, trying to build on what we’ve been doing. We all know this coach will have played a different formation from what they have done before, so we're just planning and preparing for both.

“But we are not overly concerned about what he will throw at us, we know from his past games in his club, what he prefers, if he's going to do all of those changes to the national team, we just have to see.”

Mike Jones26 March 2026 18:36

'We know not to be over-ambitious'

Here’s more pre-match thoughts from Heimir Hallgrimsson who outlined what Ireland need to be aware of for tonight’s match.

"That's kind of the psychology for a game like this,” he said.

“We all know by now why we got good results and good performances, and that's the key, not be over-ambitious, stay on point, focus on why we are here and trying to improve that, not only this game, continuously."

Mike Jones26 March 2026 18:18

'It's a huge game'

Southampton midfielder Finn Azaz spoke to RTE about the magnitude of tonight's game for Republic of Ireland.

"Yeah, there's no point in denying it, it's a huge game but I think our mentality as a team is really strong and I think we know how big it is.

"But we also know that we're capable of winning the game. The November camp showed us what we're capable of. We're going into the knowing how big it is but also with the knowledge of what we're capable of now."

Mike Jones26 March 2026 18:06

Troy Parrott on becoming Republic of Ireland’s hero, Mourinho’s impact and searching for ‘big moments’

It was a moment that caused many Irish people to lose their capacity for rational thought. It was already the kind of high-stakes circumstance where the intensity of emotion overrides everything else, but there was none of that for the man at the centre.

Troy Parrott was alert to everything, which was exactly how he scored the goal that meant everything to a nation dreaming of reaching the Fifa World Cup 2026.

“It’s more of a mental thing,” the 24-year-old says now, sitting in a very relaxed mood in his Amsterdam apartment. “It’s just getting in the box and hoping that the ball is going to fall.”

Troy Parrott on becoming Republic of Ireland’s hero and Mourinho’s impact

After instilling belief in pursuit of World Cup 2026 qualification, Parrott tells Miguel Delaney about his newfound stardom, how he transformed his game and aspirations for the future

Miguel Delaney26 March 2026 18:00

'It's important to be ready'

"It's important to be ready and visualise what's ahead of us," said Republic of Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson.

"It's important now to do a session at the stadium, for example, just to feel the atmosphere, see the stadium, feel the grass, etc, knowing what to expect, knowing what they are saying and how they see this game.

"And then it's just tactical, being ready for what they will throw at us and do what we need to do and just remind ourselves why we are in this position, continue to grow and do the same things that we have been doing.”

Mike Jones26 March 2026 17:54