A depleted Republic of Ireland side travel to Finland on Wednesday evening for their next UEFA Nations League clash.
The visitors have been hit by injuries, suspensions and coronavirus cases, but anything less than victory in Helsinki will all but end their hopes of qualifying from Group B4.
Finland are four points better off in second and are now hot on Wales's heels after the Dragons played out a goalless draw with Ireland on Sunday.
Match preview
Republic of Ireland are still searching for their first win under Stephen Kenny following their drab draw with Wales in Dublin at the weekend.
Kenny's side arguably edged things at the Aviva Stadium thanks to a couple of second-half opportunities, but they were unable to find a way through.
The Boys in Green are still without a UEFA Nations League victory in seven attempts, including a couple of draws and a defeat in the current campaign.
Ireland could really do with a morale-boosting victory in Helsinki, having also seen their Euro 2020 qualifying hopes come to a cruel end at the hands of Slovakia last week.
Kenny lost Adam Idah and Aaron Connolly shortly before kickoff in that game after the pair came in close contact with a backroom staff member that tested positive for coronavirus.
If that was not enough for the recently-appointed boss to deal with, he then lost a further five players for coronavirus-related reasons ahead of the Wales match.
David McGoldrick and James McCarthy were already unavailable because of injury, while Kevin Long left the pitch early with a facial injury.
Furthermore, James McClean will now serve a suspension after being sent off on Sunday, meaning that Kenny's options are extremely thin, even if Connolly and Idah are now eligible again.
© Reuters
Finland will be looking to take full advantage of their opponents' on-and-off-field woes as they attempt to overhaul Wales at the top of the group.
Markku Kanerva's side beat Bulgaria 2-0 on Sunday through goals from Robert Taylor and Fredrik Jensen, making it back-to-back competitive wins after beating Ireland 1-0 in Dublin.
However, Finland have followed up their last three victories with a defeat, having gone down 5-1 to Poland in a friendly in between those aforementioned UEFA Nations League wins.
The Eagle-Owls are one of just four sides to concede only once at home in the competition, with their rate of 0.2 goals conceded per game at home the best of any team.
That does not bode well for Republic of Ireland, as they have failed to score in each of their last three internationals and have played out goalless draws in their last two.
Finland Nations League form: LWW
Finland form (all competitions): WLLWLW
Republic of Ireland Nations League form: DLD
Republic of Ireland form (all competitions): WDDLLD
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© Reuters
The return of Idah and Connolly after two games out - two games it has since transpired they should never have actually sat out - is a major boost for Kenny.
However, he is still without the suspended McClean and the quartet of John Egan, Callum Robinson, Callum O'Dowda and Alan Browne, with each of those placed in self-isolation.
West Bromwich Albion's Dara O'Shea, Derby County's Jason Knight, Queens Park Rangers' Ryan Manning and Portsmouth's Ronan Curtis have all been called up.
Kevin Long remains part of the squad, meanwhile, despite sustaining a facial injury against Wales, and could start this match in Helsinki.
As for the hosts, Kanerva is unlikely to make too many changes for this second competitive match in three days.
Teemu Pukki has 25 goals in 83 internationals and will almost certainly lead the line, while Jensen is in contention to return to the XI after scoring from the bench versus Bulgaria.
Finland possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Raitala, Toivio, Arajuuri, Uronen; Niskanen, Sparv, Kamara, Taylor; Pukki, Jensen
Republic of Ireland possible starting lineup:
Randolph; Doherty, Duffy, Long, Stevens; Cullen, Hourihane; Horgan, Hendrick, Connolly; Idah
We say: Finland 1-0 Republic of Ireland
The Republic of Ireland are without a win in eight competitive games (D6 L2) - only once before have they endured a longer such run - and have to deal with a number of absentees.
Finland, by comparison, have won four of their last six competitive matches and look in good shape to keep their momentum going with another victory on Wednesday.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:dataData Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Finland win with a probability of 53.25%. A draw had a probability of 28% and a win for Republic of Ireland had a probability of 18.71%.
The most likely scoreline for a Finland win was 1-0 with a probability of 17.59%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (12%) and 2-1 (8.21%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 0-0 (12.89%), while for a Republic of Ireland win it was 0-1 (8.82%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 17.6% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for Finland in this match.
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