Republic of Ireland vs. Portugal: “It won’t be a basketball game” – Heimir Hallgrimsson

Republic of Ireland coach Heimir Hallgrimsson has insisted that Portugal’s World Cup qualifier in Dublin on Thursday “will not be a basketball match”.

In the return match last month in Lisbon, they were able to thwart Portugal before Ruben Neves’ stoppage-time winner snatched a 1-0 win for the hosts.

This was followed by a win over Armenia for the Republic of Ireland to leave them in third place in Group F, one point behind second-placed Hungary.

Hallgrimsson said: “Our approach will not change. We need to play in a certain style against Portugal, whether we want to win or draw, we need to play in a certain style.”

He added: “We cannot go all-in against a team like Portugal. It will not be a basketball match, and then we will take calculated risks if we want to score a goal later in the game.”

He added: “We have a plan for that and the players must be psychologically prepared for this confrontation.”

The 58-year-old does not expect their opponents to change their approach in the reverse fixture, despite Roberto Martinez’s side failing to create many goal-scoring chances against them in October.

A strong defensive performance from the Republic frustrated their hosts on the night, with Caoimhin Kelleher saving a second-half penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo before Neves headed in the lead in the 91st minute.

“They will probably adjust some things, since they didn’t create many goal-scoring chances against us,” Hallgrimsson continued.

“They had some shots from outside the box, some crosses, but I think we kind of controlled the way they attacked us. We can’t defend all their threats – it’s impossible – so we need to give them some areas and then we know what to expect.”