Armenia vs Ireland Prediction for 10 September 2025 - Football

🔊 Which national team will secure their first victory in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers? Ireland traditionally perform better at home, yet they are considered favorites in the upcoming match, even though it will take place in Yerevan at the "Vazgen Sargsyan Stadium." Armenia currently appear as the underdogs in Group F. However, with strong performances in their home fixtures, they could contend for the second spot, which offers a playoff berth for a ticket to the World Cup. We will explore various scenarios to ensure our prediction is insightful.

Head-to-Head

📊 The last time these teams faced off was in the 2022 Nations League. On that occasion, Armenia secured their first-ever home victory over Ireland with a 1-0 win. In the away match, they scored even more but failed to take any points, losing 3-2 after conceding a decisive goal in stoppage time. Eduard Spertsyan found the net in both encounters, and he remained with FC Krasnodar during the summer transfer window.

Armenia Team Overview

Armenia remain uncertain about the future of their national team. Recently, John van 't Schip was appointed as head coach, but he only managed four matches. During this period, the team suffered a heavy defeat in the Nations League playoffs against Georgia (1-9). Their defensive performance was unconvincing in June friendlies, losing to Kosovo (2-5) and settling for a draw with Montenegro (2-2).

The new qualifying cycle began with Egishe Melikyan at the helm. However, he also failed to address the defensive issues. The first opponent was Portugal, but that didn't change the fact that the defense was porous. As a result, the "European Brazilians" scored five unanswered goals.

Ireland Team Overview

This year, Ireland have played five matches without suffering a single defeat. They secured promotion to Division B of the Nations League by winning both playoff matches against Bulgaria (2-1, 2-1). The other results were draws. A draw against Senegal (1-1) can be considered a success, especially since England lost to them. However, the goalless draw with Luxembourg (0-0) left some questions unanswered.

In the current qualifying campaign, Ireland kicked off with a draw. Hosting Hungary, they found themselves two goals down by the 15th minute. However, the hosts managed to turn the tide. Early in the second half, Evan Ferguson pulled one back. Shortly after, the "Green Army" gained a numerical advantage. In stoppage time, Adam Idah salvaged a draw for his team (2-2).

Latest news

Armenia

🎙 Egishe Melikyan stood by his players following the heavy defeat to Portugal: "It might seem like the Armenian players struggled to win possession, but I'll say that it's incredibly tough to take the ball from a team like Portugal. I instructed my players to avoid direct challenges and defend differently. They did everything right, but Portugal overwhelmed us with their quality."

❌ Armenia face no major losses. Narek Grigoryan is not called up due to injury. Norberto Briasco misses the camp for family reasons. Hovhannes Hambardzumyan has lost match fitness at Noah, so he's also absent from the squad, and Varazdat Haroyan has retired from international duty.

Ireland

🎙 Republic of Ireland's head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson expressed his dissatisfaction with the draw against Hungary: “There are more positives than negatives. We definitely respect this point. It's one point for us, but not three for Hungary. I would give the Man of the Match award to their goalkeeper, not ours.”

❌ In the upcoming match, midfielder Robbie Brady and forward Troy Parrott will be sidelined due to injuries. The absence of Parrott is particularly significant as he has been one of the top scorers in the Eredivisie for several seasons.

🟨 Referee and Yellow Cards

🟨 Referee and Yellow Cards

The main referee for the match is Goga Kikacheishvili from Georgia. It's understandable if the visitors are less than thrilled about a referee from a neighboring country to Armenia. This year, he has officiated nine matches in the national championship, averaging 4.83 yellow cards per game. Kikacheishvili also handled one Nations League match recently, where he issued five yellow cards.

Looking at last year's match stats, Ireland holds the edge in yellow cards with an average of 2.4 compared to 2 for Armenia. Matches involving Ireland tend to average 5.4 warnings. In a recent game against Hungary, the referee had to brandish eight yellow cards. Therefore, we suggest betting on total yellow cards over 4.5.

⚽️ Goal Prediction

We've already noted Armenia's significant defensive issues. They concede frequently, particularly in the second half—in 7 of their last 8 matches. Recently, Ireland managed to score twice after the break. Thus, it's likely that the visitors will score in the 2nd half.

🚩 Corner Prediction

Analyzing last year's match statistics, Armenia nearly doubles Ireland in corner kicks, averaging 6.3 to 3.5. It's clear their opponents were less challenging, though results don't always reflect this. This suggests Armenia plays quite aggressively on the attack, especially after conceding a goal, and it's unlikely they'll keep a clean sheet in the upcoming match. Therefore, betting on the home team to win with a +1.5 corner handicap looks quite appealing.

Ireland head into this match as favorites, boasting superiority over Armenia in several facets of the game, particularly with their solid defense and strong goalkeeper. This could be enough to limit goals conceded, potentially even keeping a clean sheet. Considering the hosts' tendency to concede frequently, a reasonable prediction for the final score is a 1-2 victory for Ireland.

Armenia's best chance lies in harnessing an emotional boost, which can still be achieved even after conceding five goals against Portugal. Regardless of the scoreline, the hosts are expected to push forward frequently to either take the lead or equalize, with set-pieces like corners playing a crucial role. On average, Egishe Melikyan's side delivers around 6.3 corners per game, making Armenia's total corners over 3.5 a key bet.