Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Nations League match.
In the current UEFA Nations League campaign, the national teams of Ireland and Finland have struggled to achieve their main objective, quickly falling behind Greece and England in the standings. For the second leg, the Irish team need only a minimal points haul to contend for staying in League B.
Ireland
In four Nations League matches, Ireland have surpassed a total under 2.5 just once. After their victory in Helsinki (2:1), the team showed little against Greece in Piraeus (0:2), with only two shots on target compared to seven from the group leaders. The attacking trio of Evan Ferguson, Chiedozie Ogbene, and Troy Parrott have found it difficult to create chances against strong opponents due to the overall quality of Ireland's attacking players being not particularly high.
Finland
Finland have started their four tournament matches with little ambition, failing to secure a single point and are on the brink of relegation to League C. Against England (1:3), they managed to create 1.24 xG with three shots on target but only found the net from a free kick and corner in the closing minutes. For the challenging trip to Dublin, there's a possibility one of the experienced forwards, Joel Pohjanpalo or Teemu Pukki, might return to the starting lineup, although this is unlikely to significantly improve their attacking prowess.
Ireland vs Finland Prediction
In the return leg between Ireland and Finland, there won’t be many dangerous moments. Both teams have scored only two goals each in four tournament games, so we shouldn’t expect a high-scoring affair. A dry and dull match between two sides fighting for survival lies ahead.
