Goalkeeper/defence

THE GOALKEEPER Caoimhín Kelleher will keep his place in the team barring a late injury.

Aside from the individual error by Nathan Collins, the Irish side defended reasonably well against Finland.

So it would be no surprise if Heimir Hallgrímsson goes with the same backline.

His options might be more limited than before. Mark McGuinness missed the game in Helsinki after getting injured in the warm-up and there is no update on his availability at the time of writing.

Perhaps the only slight question mark is over Robbie Brady and whether Ireland would want a more defensive option against a Greek team that are stronger than Finland.

One alternative would be to start Liam Scales at left-back, restoring Dara O’Shea to the centre alongside Collins.

You could then put Andrew Omobamidele at right-back, where he played in the home Greece match and did okay.

Alternatively, a more adventurous approach would be picking Festy Ebosele at right-back, after his hugely impressive cameo on Thursday.

But Hallgrímsson has spoken of a desire for consistency in selection, so he is unlikely to make drastic alterations to the backline.

Midfield

Josh Cullen and Jason Knight both had decent games in Helsinki and completed 90 minutes.

Cullen will almost definitely retain his place as he made a big difference in shoring up the midfield, having been unavailable for the last international window.

Knight exerted plenty of energy in Helsinki, but the 23-year-old should be raring to go again.

The option is there to freshen it up with Jayson Molumby or uncapped Ipswich Town midfielder Jack Taylor.

You suspect at least one of those players will be needed owing to the gruelling, quick turnaround in international football.

Yet Hallgrímsson might see them better utilised as impact subs. And it would be harsh to drop either Cullen or Knight given both players performed relatively well the other night.

In the more attacking midfield role, Finn Azaz hasn’t yet shown enough to suggest he can be a mainstay there for years to come.

However, Jamie McGrath didn’t have a dramatic impact when he came on in the 71st minute, so Azaz is probably the slight favourite to start after making his competitive debut during the week.

The other option is to move Sammie Szmodics to a more central role and play a conventional winger on the left. 

But Szmodics has been playing exclusively on the left-hand side at club level since joining Premier League outfit Ipswich, and Hallgrímsson may prefer to stick with as consistent a lineup to Helsinki as possible, as it was undoubtedly Ireland’s most significant away victory for seven years.

Attack

If Hallgrímsson is to make changes, attack is the area where he most likely will bring new people in.

Evan Ferguson, Chiedozie Ogbene and Szmodics have not been guaranteed starters for their clubs this season, and none of that trio looked at their best against Finland.

Yet three alternative options — Adam Idah, Kasey McAteer and Mikey Johnston — have also been used sparingly at club level.

With six goals in 10 appearances for Dutch side AZ, Troy Parrott is the form attacker, albeit he is playing at a lower level than many of his compatriots.

But the 22-year-old probably has the strongest claim to come in if Ferguson is considered not ready to play two games in three days, with the 19-year-old having completed only 22 top-flight minutes for Brighton this season.

Possible Ireland XI: Kelleher; O’Shea, Collins, Scales, Brady; Cullen, Knight; Ogbene, Azaz, Szmodics; Ferguson.

Ireland squad:

Goalkeepers: Caoimhin Kelleher (Liverpool), Mark Travers (AFC Bournemouth), Max O’Leary (Bristol City) 

Defenders: Festy Ebosele (Watford, on loan from Udinese), Andrew Omobamidele (Nottingham Forest), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Mark McGuinness (Luton Town), Dara O’Shea (Ipswich Town), Liam Scales (Celtic), Robbie Brady (Preston North End).

Midfielders: Josh Cullen (Burnley), Jason Knight (Bristol City), Jayson Molumby (West Bromwich Albion), Finn Azaz (Middlesbrough), Jack Taylor (Ipswich Town), Jamie McGrath (Aberdeen).

Forwards: Adam Idah (Celtic), Evan Ferguson (Brighton and Hove Albion), Chiedozie Ogbene (Ipswich Town), Kasey McAteer (Leicester City), Sammie Szmodics (Ipswich Town), Mikey Johnston (West Bromwich Albion), Troy Parrott (AZ Alkmaar).