JOHN O'SHEA claimed a creditable draw on his debut as interim Republic of Ireland boss and will now be looking to see off Switzerland in Dublin to get a first win under his belt.
The former Manchester United star should have got that victory at the weekend against Belgium, only for star striker Evan Ferguson to fluff his lines by slipping when he stepped up to take a penalty.
The 0-0 draw, which busted the coupon of our man Mark, was far from thrilling but it was still an improvement on some of the limp displays under former gaffer Stephen Kenny during the doomed bid to reach Euro 2024.
After a miserable couple of years there appears to be some rays of light for Irish fans with the likes of Ferguson, Chiedozie Ogbene and Caoimhin Kelleher starting to make an impact in the Premier League.
Whoever takes over from Kenny as permanent manager has a decent squad to work with and O'Shea will be looking to press his case for the job by defeating a Swiss side who are warming up for Euro 2024.
The Swiss have been a model of consistency over the last 22 years, with Euro 2012 the only major tournament they have missed out on. With Germany, Scotland and Hungary in their group at this summer's finals, Switzerland will be targeting a run to the latter stages at Euro 2024.
Murat Yakin's side only lost once in the qualifiers but finished second behind Romania after drawing five of their 10 games. They had another stalemate on Saturday away to Denmark in a friendly and you have to go back to September 2023 for their last victory – at home to minnows Andorra.
That's not the kind of form the Swiss will want to take into the finals so Yakin will be desperate for a win in Dublin as he bids to build some momentum.
How the bookies view it
This is a tricky one to call but Switzerland are 13/10 favourites at Betway while the Republic of Ireland are as big as 21/10 at Unibet. Given the Swiss penchant for draws of late, backing the stalemate at 27/11 with VBet might be the best option.
Head to head
The Republic of Ireland have a good record against Switzerland, winning eight of the 18 matches and losing just six. But it was the Swiss who had the edge when these teams last faced off in the Euro 2020 qualifiers, with a 1-1 Dublin draw followed by a 2-0 victory in Geneva.
Players to watch
Winger Mikey Johnston has been in incredible form since joining West Brom on loan from Celtic, with six goals in just eight appearances. He came off the bench for Ireland on Saturday and should get a start here, with Paddy Power pricing him at 11/5 for either a goal or assist.
Ruben Vargas is a threat for the Swiss and the Augsburg forward is 11/5 with Paddy Power to either score or set up a goal for someone else.
Anything else catch the eye?
With both these sides grinding out 0-0 draws at the weekend it doesn't bode well for a Dublin thriller. Under 2.5 goals is just 4/6 at BoyleSports but betting against BTTS is a little better at 9/10 with Betfair. The half-time draw offers more value at 21/20 with 888Sport.
With the Irish having home advantage it could pay to back them to win most corners and that bet pays 5/4 with SkyBet.
This International Friendly match between Republic of Ireland and Switzerland will be played on Mar 26, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Republic of Ireland vs Switzerland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
