Bulgaria v Republic of Ireland: All you need to know

UEFA Nations League Group B promotion/relegation play-off

Bulgaria v Republic of Ireland, Hristo Botev Stadium, Plovdiv, 7.45pm

When

Thursday 20 March, kick-off 7.45pm [9.45pm Bulgarian time]

TV/Player

Watch live build-up and coverage of the match on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 7pm.

Radio

Listen to live commentary on an extended Game On with 2fm.

Online

There will be a live blog on rte.ie/sport, the RTÉ News app, as well as updates and goals on RTÉ Sport on X and RTÉ Sport Facebook.

Weather

It'll be three degrees for kick-off given it's nearly 10pm when the game kicks off local time. The weather has been a bit Irish, with snow mixed in with sunshine and the wind chill. It should be dry for the game.

Why are we playing Bulgaria twice this week?

A fair question. Republic of Ireland finished in third spot in the UEFA Nations League.

That meant we avoided automatic relegation to League C and instead form a play-off with Bulgaria.

Bulgaria finished in second place in their group below so this is a promotion / relegation play-off.

Despite winning just a handful of Nations League matches since the introduction of the competition, Ireland have managed to maintain League B status.

That is important, for reasons we shall go into.

Why is staying in League B important?

The youthful Ireland squad are aiming to stay in League B

Well, before we get into that, let's just appreciate having the games firstly.

Heimir Hallgrimsson is in the early days of his tenure and is preparing for a first qualifying campaign later in the year.

Playing a side in and around our level over two competitive matches will be a big help for the Irish boss in trying to figure out his squad for World Cup qualifying.

Our last match was a humbling 5-0 loss to England. Two wins over Finland were the only points on the board the Boys in Green secured out of six matches.

Ireland will take any competitive games we can get at this time. While they may not be glamorous, the Ireland boss will not mind that.

So let's take the logistics of League B.

Dropping to League C would give us a better chance of a play-off by topping that group next time around, although given our current form there is no guarantee we would.

Being in the second tier offers better matches, which Ireland do need both for footballing reasons and to ensure crowds continue to come to the Aviva Stadum.

Bulgaria, for example, would have fancied they could have topped their League C group.

They finished behind Northern Ireland, having lost 5-0 at Windsor Park during the campaign.

Conor Neville explains all here.

In short, a victory would be better than defeat to stay among the higher echelons and the hope improvement will come in time.

Heimir brings in few faces

Gavin Bazunu is back in green

Injuries and the introduction of youth has led to some changes to the Ireland squad

Gavin Bazunu, possibly now third choice, makes a welcome return after over a year out with injury.

James Abankwah is in for the first time, in theory edging out Seamus Coleman who has struggled with injuries and game time.

Rocco Vata ia also promoted from the Under-21s after a good season so far with Watford.

Stoke City midfielder Andrew Moran and Southampton defender Ryan Manning were not in the original squad.

Moran replaced injured Southampton midfielder Will Smallbone whilst his Saints team-mate Ryan Manning fills in for Cardiff City wing-back Callum O'Dowda.

Midfield looks an area of concern, as it has done for quite some time. Expect Josh Cullen and Jason Knight to feature. After that, it is open to interpretation.

Sinclair Armstrong is back in the squad attack but it's likely Adam Idah, Troy Parrott and Evan Ferguson will battle it out to be the main man in attack.

There was talk of players who currently and recently played in the League of Ireland being in the squad.

Josh Honohan and Johnny Kenny made the provisional group without entering the final reckoning.

Goalkeepers: Caoimhín Kelleher (Liverpool), Mark Travers (Middlesbrough, on loan from AFC Bournemouth), Gavin Bazunu (Standard Liége, on loan from Southampton).

Defenders: Jake O'Brien (Everton), Matt Doherty (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Dara O'Shea (Ipswich Town), Jimmy Dunne (Queens Park Rangers), James Abankwah (Watford, on loan from Udinese), Robbie Brady (Preston North End), Ryan Manning (Southampton).

Midfielders: Josh Cullen (Burnley), Jason Knight (Bristol City), Jack Taylor (Ipswich Town), Mark Sykes (Bristol City), Finn Azaz (Middlesbrough), Andrew Moran (Stoke City, on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion).

Attackers: Evan Ferguson (West Ham United, on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion), Adam Idah (Celtic), Troy Parrott (AZ Alkmaar), Sinclair Armstrong (Bristol City), Mikey Johnston (West Bromwich Albion), Rocco Vata (Watford).

Bulgaria are in a similar place to us

Raf Diallo has been hearing about the problems in the nation when it comes to football.

Their decline, like Ireland's, has been rapid.

Their Nations League campaign did have a couple of highlights with a home victory over Northern Ireland and another 1-0 success in Luxembourg.

The heavy defeat in Belfast was particularly painful.

Ireland played them twice in 2020 behind closed doors, ending in forgettable draws.

Ticket sales have not been good for this game, with just over 5,000 sold as of Tuesday. Around 1,000 Irish fans are included in that figure.

Striker Kiril Despodov is their standout player. He has 15 goals in 54 caps and bagged the winner against Northern Ireland.

What is to come after this?

Well the second leg of the game is on Sunday. That will decide our status in the Nations League going forward.

But the real business is a World Cup qualification campaign which is in September, beginning with a clash with Hungary.

In the interim, it was announced on Tuesday that the June window will be occupied by two friendlies with Senegal and Luxumbourg.

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Watch Bulgaria v Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League on Thursday from 7pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live commentary on an extended 2fm's Game On.

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