Heimir Hallgrímsson on Ireland World Cup hopes: 'We have it in our hands, so why be negative?'

Portugal will come to Lansdowne Road seeking the win that books their ticket to North America with a game to spare. Then Three days later Ireland will enter the Lion’s Den of the Puskás Aréna in Budapest.

POSITIVE: Head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson sits for a portrait before a Republic of Ireland squad announcement at FAI Headquarters. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile.

Whatever about the shrinkage of top-flight Irish players, it’s inopportune for that coterie to be suffering dips as the international itinerary climaxes.

That’s the situation Heimir Hallgrímsson faces when gathering his players on Sunday for the concluding qualifiers in the World Cup campaign.