Bulgaria vs Republic of Ireland Predictions

• Bulgaria lost seven of their last nine matches.
• Under 2.5 goals were scored in 11 of Ireland’s last 12 competitive games.
• Bulgaria failed to score in three of their last four home fixtures.

New era begins for the Republic

New Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny takes charge of the Boys in Green for the first time this week following his promotion from his role with the country’s U21s, and a trip to take on a low-level Bulgaria outfit offers Kenny a huge opportunity to get off to a winning start.

There is hope among Irish supporters that a new generation of gifted young Irish players will be blooded under Kenny, though it could take the ex-Dundalk manager some time to adapt to a level of football he has little experience in.

Ireland had developed a tough to beat if uninspiring reputation under their last boss Mick McCarthy, and having seen under 2.5 goals hit the net in 13 of their last 15 matches, it could prove difficult to transition to a more free-flowing style of play in the early stages of Kenny’s tenure.

Bulgaria’s confidence at a low ebb

Bulgaria meanwhile, are in the midst of a bleak period of performances and results – a pattern that head coach Georgi Dermendzhiev, appointed last October, has struggled to change.

Ahead of their Nations League opener at home to Ireland this week, Bulgaria’s record reads just one win from their last 14 fixtures in a dismal sequence that stretches all the way back to 201, while a return of just one goal from their last six fixtures points towards a paucity of quality in the final third.

Few goals anticipated in Sofia

Bulgaria’s lack of attacking thrust is well established, though their opponents in Sofia this week have been held back by their own goal-scoring problems up top.

The Republic managed to plunder a total of just eight goals in their last 12 competitive international fixtures, though their ability to keep things tight at their own end resulted in under 2.5 goals being hit in 11 of those matches.

We think it’s likely that Ireland’s latest test against a dour Bulgaria team will be similarly low on excitement, making the under 2.5 goals market well worth considering even at the short prices on offer.

Our correct score prediction tips Ireland to eventually carve out a narrow 1-0 win however. Bulgaria were turned over in seven of their last nine fixtures, and failed to find the net in three of their last four of those games – all of which were contested at home.

With a rearguard anchored by seasoned Premier League campaigners like Seamus Coleman, Shane Duffy, John Egan, Matt Doherty and Enda Stevens, Ireland have a backline robustenough to keep the Bulgarians out on Thursday, and having scored exactly once in five of their last eight competitive internationals, we’re backing the Republic to take one chance at the right end.