Republic of Ireland interim boss Noel King will hope to end his short spell in charge of the national team with three points against Kazakhstan on Tuesday.

King, who was put in temporary charge of the nation following Giovanni Trapattoni's decision to step down last month, oversaw Friday's 3-0 defeat to group leaders Germany.

The home side have won just three of their nine Group C matches, with a total of 11 points leaving them with no chance of qualifying for the World Cup in Brazil next summer.

Kazakhstan, meanwhile, have managed just one win in the group, but they have won two of their last five matches in all competitions. The corresponding match between the two nations took place in September 2012, with Republic of Ireland claiming all three points in a 2-1 win.

Republic of Ireland skipper Robbie Keane will face a late fitness test on an ankle injury, but is expected to win his 130th senior cap for his country.

Celtic's Anthony Stokes is also expected to start, either alongside or at the expense of Keane, while defenders Richard Dunne and John O'Shea are also available after serving suspensions.

Kazakhstan have no fresh injury concerns from their 1-1 draw with the Faroe Islands last week and could therefore name the same starting lineup.

Andrey Finonchenko, who scored last time out, should continue in attack, but Pavel Shabalin is also pushing for selection in the final third.

Recent form

Republic of Ireland: LDLLL

Kazakhstan: LWWLD

Possible starting lineups

Republic of Ireland: Forde; Kelly, Dunne, O'Shea, Wilson; Coleman, Gibson, Whelan, McCarthy; Keane, Stokes

Kazakhstan: Sidelnikov; Kislitsyn, Gorman, Engel, Muldarov; Zhumaskaliyev, Shomko, Bogdanov, Korobkin; Finonchenko, Shabalin

Sports Mole says: 2-0

Written by
Matt Law

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