Portugal vs Ireland: prediction & betting odds 11 October 2025

The Matchday 7 fixture of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers between Portugal and Ireland will be held on October 11 at the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon. Portugal vs. Ireland: prediction and betting odds, statistics.

Portugal

As the group's favorite, the team started their World Cup campaign with two victories. While they easily handled Armenia in the opening match, the second round was more tense – Roberto Martinez's side narrowly won 3-2 away against Hungary, with the decisive goal coming late on. Importantly, their winning streak in World Cup qualifiers now stands at four matches, and Portugal is the sole leader in their group standings.

• The team has not lost in 20 of their last 21 World Cup qualifying matches (18 wins, 2 draws).
• Portugal's home scoring streak in this tournament stretches to 20 games.
• The team has scored at least 2 goals in 9 of their last 11 World Cup qualifying matches.

Predicted lineup for Portugal (4-2-3-1)

Diogo Costa Pinto – Diogo Dalot, Antonio Silva, Ruben Dias, Nuno Mendes – Vitinha, Ruben Neves – Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Pedro Neto – Cristiano Ronaldo.

Due to injuries, defender João Cancelo and midfielder João Neves are unavailable.

Ireland

The September qualifying phase did not go well for the team. Before facing the group's strongest opponent, Ireland had only collected 1 point from 2 rounds, leaving them at the bottom of the table. The team narrowly avoided two losses by securing a draw in the dying moments against Hungary. After that, Ireland lost to Armenia, ending a six-match unbeaten run in World Cup qualifiers (2 wins, 4 draws).

• The team has scored in 7 of their last 8 World Cup qualifying matches.
• Ireland has not lost in 8 of their last 11 away matches in this tournament (5 wins, 3 draws).
• The team has won with a +1.5 goal handicap in 11 previous World Cup qualifying games.

Predicted lineup for Ireland (3-4-3)

Caoimhín Kelleher – Jake O'Brien, Nathan Collins, Dara O'Shea – Chiedozie Ogbene, Josh Cullen, Jason Molumby, Ryan Manning – Jack Taylor, Finn Azaz, Evan Ferguson.

Due to injuries, defender Matt Doherty and forward Sammy Smodic are not included in the squad. Defender Liam Scales will miss the match for family reasons.

Referee

Ivan Kružliak (Slovakia)

Matches – 13 (International matches, 2024/25–2025/26);

Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 62;

Average yellow cards per match – 4.8;

Red cards shown – 0;

Average fouls per match – 25;

Penalties – 31%.

Portugal vs. Ireland: Match Prediction

Portugal has already scored 8 goals in World Cup qualifiers, and in total, we have seen 10 goals in 2 matches involving Roberto Martinez's side. This level of scoring is typical for the team – at least 3 goals have been scored in 9 of Portugal's last 11 World Cup qualifying games. Moreover, this mark was reached in 4 of their last 5 home matches in this tournament.

Ireland's matches are slightly less spectacular, but they have already seen 7 goals in 2 matches in the current qualifying cycle. This statistic is not surprising, as 4 of Ireland's last 5 World Cup qualifying games have been high-scoring. In away matches, at least 3 goals have been scored in each of the team's last 5 games in this tournament.

I expect these trends to continue in the head-to-head clash. Prediction: Total over 2.5 goals