Preview: Armenia vs Republic of Ireland - prediction, team news, lineups

Republic of Ireland will be aiming to post their first 2026 World Cup qualification win when they continue their Group F campaign with a contest against Armenia on Tuesday night.

The visitors opened their campaign with a 2-2 draw against Hungary on Saturday, while the hosts were beaten 5-0 by Portugal in their opening fixture in Group F on the same night.

Match preview

Armenia were three goals behind to Portugal at the interval of their Group F opener, before conceding twice more in the second period to suffer a 5-0 defeat, so it has been a very tough start to their 2026 World Cup qualification process.

The national side have not actually won a single match since June 2023, while they are on a run of five losses from their last six in all competitions, conceding 16 times in their last three defeats.

Yegishe Melikyan's side will know that they are up against it in this section, but their supporters will be demanding an important on Saturday, and the hosts know what it takes to overcome Republic of Ireland.

Indeed, Armenia beat Republic of Ireland 1-0 in the Nations League in June 2022, but it was 3-2 to the Boys in Green when they locked horns for the reverse fixture in September 2022.

Armenia are yet to qualify for the finals of a major tournament, but they did finish third during qualification for Euro 2012, winning five of their 10 matches, which is their best-ever performance in a qualification campaign.

Republic of Ireland, meanwhile, are bidding to qualify for the finals of a World Cup for just the fourth time in their history.

The national side famously reached the quarter-finals of the 1990 competition before making the round of 16 in 1994 and 2002, but they have not managed to secure a spot in the finals since.

Heimir Hallgrimsson's side trailed 2-0 to Hungary in their section opener on Saturday, but they halved the deficit in the 49th minute through Evan Ferguson before Adam Idah headed a last-gasp leveller for the hosts.

The result left the Boys in Green in third spot in the section, and there is no question that Portugal will be the favourites to finish at the summit, with Hungary and Republic of Ireland potentially battling for second.

There is simply no downplaying the importance of this match to Hallgrimsson's side, as it is the type of fixture that they will need to win in order to stand a realistic chance of being present at the 2026 World Cup.

Armenia World Cup Qualifying - Europe form:

Armenia form (all competitions):

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Republic of Ireland World Cup Qualifying - Europe form:

Republic of Ireland form (all competitions):

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Team News

Armenia will once again be looking to Tigran Barseghyan for goals on Tuesday, with the 31-year-old the joint-leading goalscorer in the squad on nine.

Despite the nature of the performance and result against Portugal last time out, it is unlikely that head coach Melikyan will shuffle his pack here, with no major surprises expected in the XI.

Ugochukwu Iwu is set to continue in the middle of midfield for the home side.

As for the Republic of Ireland, Idah's goal off the bench last time out was his sixth for his country, and the 24-year-old is now in contention to start, but he could ultimately feature among the substitutes once again.

Ferguson has also found the back of the net on six occasions for the national side, and he will feature in the final third, with Finn Azaz likely to operate just off the centre-forward.

Surprises are unlikely, with Dara O'Shea and Nathan Collins set to operate in the middle of the defence, while Josh Cullen and Jason Knight will continue in the middle of the midfield.

Armenia possible starting lineup:

Avagyan; Hovhannisyan, Harutyunyan, Muradyan, Piloyan; Bichakhchyan, Zelarayan, Iwu, Tiknizyan; Barseghyan, Spertsyan

Republic of Ireland possible starting lineup:

Kelleher; O'Brien, O'Shea, Collins, Doherty; Szmodics, Cullen, Knight, Manning; Azaz, Ferguson

We say: Armenia 1-2 Republic of Ireland

Armenia are capable of making this a tricky match for the Republic of Ireland, and it would not be a complete shock to see a draw, but we do fancy the visitors to navigate their way to an important three points.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.