The Republic of Ireland finalise their plans for Euro 2012 on Monday evening, when they face Hungary in Budapest in their final warm-up match. Giovanni Trapattoni’s men will look to extend their unbeaten run to 14 matches and further boost confidence going into this summer’s tournament.
March 2011 was the last time that the Republic lost a match, going down 3-2 at home to Uruguay in a friendly, and belief has grown in the squad, especially following the their qualification for Euro 2012.
The most impressive fact during that run has been the defensive record, with the Irish conceding just three goals and keeping 10 clean sheets in the process. With a group containing Spain, Italy and Croatia, Trapattoni’s men will need that solid base to give themselves a chance of progressing in Poland and Ukraine (Ireland 4/1 to Qualify from Group C).
Cynics would say that the quality of opposition during their recent unbeaten run has not been the best – with fixtures against the likes of Bosnia, Estonia, Andorra and Armenia. But the Irish have also recorded wins over Italy and Scotland, with draws against Russia, Croatia and Czech Republic.
A trip to Hungary should give us more of an idea where the Republic are ahead of the European Championship, as the home team also look to defend an impressive record (Match Betting – Hungary 17/10, draw 23/10, Rep of Ireland 6/4). The Magyars have lost just one of their last nine home internationals and are fresh from a shock 2-1 away win over Euro qualifiers Czech Republic.
Hungary are not made up of household names, but they do have a good team ethic and showed some of their quality in a 2-1 defeat to England at Wembley in 2010.
Midfielder Balazs Dzsudzsak, who plays for Dinamo Moscow, scored and claimed an assist against the Czechs, with Videoton striker Adam Gyurcso grabbing the winner. Meanwhile, Bolton keeper Adam Bogdan will be a familiar face to the Republic players and supporters.
Expect a number of changes in personnel and formations for the Irish, as they look to try some different things ahead of their opening group game against Croatia on June 11. Jon Walters (15/8 Anytime Goalscorer), Keith Andrews and Shane Long all started on the bench in the 1-0 win over Bosnia last week and are expected to feature from the start on Monday.
The last meeting between these sides was in 1993, when Hungary won 4-2 in Dublin in a friendly, although the Irish were 2-1 winners on their last visit to Hungary in a 1991 friendly.
The Republic would accept a draw this time as they look to continue their fine form and set themselves up for their big challenge at the European Championship.
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