Ireland vs Portugal | 2025 World Cup Qualifiers

There’s a reason why Cristiano Ronaldo is still at the core of Portugal's attack, seeing as he’s scored five goals so far this qualifying campaign. The last time Ireland and Portugal faced off happened to be the only match in which Ronaldo did not score in, though it wasn’t for a lack of trying. The star forward is sure to be gunning for redemption after several narrow misses, especially as Portugal are yet to mathematically secure their own spot at the 2026 World Cup.

No man has scored more international goals in the history of the game than Ronaldo, who has hit the net an astonishing 143 times for his country. He still holds talismanic status in the national side despite preparing to turn 41 in February and it would be a surprise if he didn’t have a chance or two against a nation that has lost each of its last six games against sides in the top 10 on rankings - conceding 12 goals in the process. 

Ronaldo is 9/4 to score first, but bearing in mind he’s lost some of the pace that made him so devastating earlier in his career, it’s worth taking the 4/6 with Betfred about him biding his time and finding the back of the net at any point in the game. 

Heimir Hallgrímsson will have to shuffle his pack on Thursday, with Jayson Molumby and Ryan Manning both serving bans after collecting two yellow cards each. Simultaneously losing Molumby’s intense tackles and Manning’s ability to create space is a big blow to Ireland’s attacking and defensive capabilities, leaving the returning Josh Cullen with a lot of pressure to shoulder in midfield after serving a suspension last time out. 

The Burnley midfielder has already picked up three yellow cards so far this season (one in the Premier League and two for his country), meaning he makes plenty of appeal at 23/10 with Quinnbet to go into the book once again here - particularly when you consider he was booked 11 times last term for his club side.  

At first glance, you would expect Ireland to be targeting set pieces as a big potential goal threat in this game, but they have been quite shy on the corner front of late. 

Indeed, Ireland have not managed to win more than eight corners in any of their last 15 international fixtures, failing to record a single corner kick in the fixture in Portugal last month (with the opposition earning nine). With that in mind, it looks worth looking at siding with corner kicks to be kept to a minimum in this contest, too, particularly when you note that there hasn’t been more than nine corners in each of Ireland’s last five competitive games. 

With Portugal also matching that stat in their last five, there looks to be plenty of value in the 6/10 on offer with William Hill for there to be under 9.5 corners during the contest.