Szczesny expects red-hot atmosphere for Poland’s crucial Dublin trip

If Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny wanted any more reason to be confident ahead of their trip to Ireland in March, he needed only to have looked behind his goal during Poland’s humbling of Georgia on Friday night.

Conspicuously draped over the south stand at the Boris Paichadze Stadium, was a red and white flag bearing the phrase “Poland’s Irish community on tour.”

Martin O’Neill may be making much of Ireland’s upcoming run of home fixtures in as key to resurrecting their European Championship qualification ambitions but, if a few hundred Poles trekked 4,500 kilometres from Ireland to Tbilisi, then several thousands of the expatriates are expected at Lansdowne Road on March 29.