Bulgaria vs Republic of Ireland Predictions

• Bulgaria have lost just one of their ten matches under Ilian Iliev 
• Four of Ireland’s last five away matches have seen them lose to nil
• Iliev’s three home matches at the helm have yielded one win and two draws, with Bulgaria conceding just once in that run

Back Bulgaria to trouble Boys in Green

To say Ireland’s 2024-25 Nations League campaign was a disappointment would really be an understatement as, not only did the Boys in Green concede 12 goals and score just three while winning only two of their six matches, they also had to endure the embarrassment of being schooled by rivals England, twice. 

Declan Rice and Jack Grealish, who both represented Ireland at various age groups, netted for the Three Lions in Dublin to rub salt in Irish wounds and England routed Heimir Hallgrimsson’s men 5-0 at Wembley. 

That drubbing was Ireland’s last outing and it marked the fourth of their last five away matches to see them beaten to nil, which spells trouble ahead of Thursday’s trip to Plovdiv for the first leg of their Nations League play-off with Bulgaria. 

Hallgrimsson’s hopes of improvement may fall flat

Thursday’s hosts, unlike their visitors, have improved greatly since appointing their new manager, with the Lions losing just one of their ten games under Ilian Iliev. 

Bulgaria may lack the star power they once had – there is certainly no players in the current squad at the level of Hristo Stoichkov or Dimitar Berbatov – but there is a real willingness to fight for their manager and national pride, something which could see them earn a positive result ahead of a trip to Dublin. 

On paper, Ireland have a far stronger squad than their hosts. However, too many of their star men are underperforming. 

Evan Ferguson has struggled for minutes at West Ham while Will Smallbone, Jake O’Brien, and Matt Doherty have spent large periods of the season in a relegation battle. 

With Ireland yet to impress under Hallgrímsson and with many of their players struggling for form, it is hard to envisage them inflicting the first home loss of the Iliev era on Bulgaria.