New-Look Ireland Side Expected
A rather new-look Ireland side heads to Montreal in what is Heimir Hallgrímsson’s last chance to experiment before the start of the UEFA Nations League in September. Saturday morning’s international friendly with Canada resembles something of a bullseye “what you could have won” moment, with the Boys in Green heading to one of the World Cup host nations after missing out on a place in the 48-team tournament following March’s heartbreak in Prague.
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Despite the agonising penalty shootout defeat, the mood around the camp appears to have remained positive with Ireland putting five goals past Grenada in Murcia before a comfortable win at home to World Cup-bound Qatar in recent weeks.
The game in Spain saw Hallgrímsson blood several international debutants before reverting to a more tried and tested line-up for the game in Dublin. The squad that has traveled to Canada is something of a mix & match with experienced squad members such as Seamus Coleman and Nathan Collins being joined by the likes of Mason Melia, Jaden Umeh, and four players called up from within the League of Ireland.
As for the hosts, this is their World Cup send-off, so a full house is expected at the Stadium Saputo. Canada’s household names are Juventus striker Jonathan David and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies, but the latter is unlikely to feature tonight as he is a major injury concern for the hosts with just six days to go until the start of the World Cup.
Canada Form Guide
Jesse Marsch’s men are unbeaten in seven matches (3W, 4D), with their last defeat coming against another World Cup-bound side, Australia, in October.
Canada haven’t exactly been playing top-tier nations during that run with their tougher-looking fixtures against Ecuador and Colombia both resulting in scoreless draws.
The North American nation received a special invite to compete at the 2024 Copa America, and they performed well, losing out on a bronze medal on penalties to Uruguay in the third/fourth-place play-off.
Before that tournament, Canada held France to a scoreless draw, so they appear to be a well-drilled outfit.
Ireland Form Guide
The Republic of Ireland are unbeaten in each of their last seven matches (W5 D2), recording as many victories in that time as across their 19 games prior; it is their best run since an eight-game spell between September 2021 and March 2022.
The Boys in Green have scored five goals across their last two away games and could score multiple goals in three consecutive matches on the road for the first time since a four-match stretch between October 2006 and September 2007.
Heimir Hallgrímsson has won 45% of his 20 matches in charge of the Republic of Ireland (W9 D5 L6) – among those to manage more than two games for the nation, only Brian Kerr (55% – 18/33) and Jack Charlton (50% – 47/94) boast a better win rate.
Canada v Ireland Head-to-Head Record
The only previous match between Canada and the Republic of Ireland came in November 2003 at Lansdowne Road – Damien Duff scored once and Robbie Keane twice in a 3-0 friendly win for the Boys in Green.
Key Players
Canada
Jonathan David has scored 39 goals in 76 caps. Despite a disappointing season for Juventus, in which he scored just six league goals in 35 Serie A outings, he will be Canada’s main goal threat on the night.
Ireland
Troy Parrott has scored four goals across the Republic of Ireland’s last two away games (3 vs Hungary, 1 vs Czechia) – the last player to net in three consecutive away appearances for the Boys in Green was Stephen Ireland between October 2006 and September 2007.
Prediction
With Canada already fretting over the fitness of one of their stars, it would only be natural for some of their players to hold something back on the eve of the World Cup.
Meanwhile, Ireland looks set to rotate quite heavily, but their back-line is always solid and features the majority of their most seasoned pros in Seamus Coleman, Jake O’Brien, Liam Scales, and Nathan Collins.
As a result, this may end up being a rather low-scoring affair.
Scoreline: Canada 1-0 (15/4)
Verdict & Betting Tips
Ranked 30 in the World compared to Ireland’s lowly standing of 59, and with a boisterous home support behind them, Canada should be coming out on top against a rather novice-looking Ireland side.
However, Canada don’t score that many goals, it’s been nine fixtures since they managed more than two in the same match. Ireland go into this affair off the back of three straight shutouts, so expect them to make like difficult for the hosts.
When and where is the Republic of Ireland’s friendly against Canada?
The Republic of Ireland faces Canada in an international friendly in Montréal on Saturday, June 6. The match serves as the co-hosts’ final warm-up fixture ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which gets underway on June 11.
The game will be played at Stade Saputo, the home of CF Montréal, located in the French-speaking province of Québec.
What time is kick-off?
Kick-off in Montréal is scheduled for Friday, June 5, at 7.30pm Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) or on Saturday, June 6 at 12.30am Irish time.
Where can I watch it?
The friendly between FIFA World Cup co-hosts Canada and the Republic of Ireland will be available for fans to watch on RTÉ2, with coverage starting at 12.15 am on Saturday, June 6.
