International football betting tips: Ireland v Iceland

Recommended bets: 

1pt draw in Republic of Ireland v Iceland at 23/10 - highly unlikely there's going to be much between the sides and draw gets the vote

1pt Isco to score anytime in France v Spain at 6/1 - expected to feature as part of expected squad rotation and on target in last two international outings

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Following swiftly on from the newly-christened ‘Battle of Dublin’ against Wales, Martin O’Neill’s Republic of Ireland side host Iceland at the Aviva Stadium on Tuesday.

The nasty broken leg sustained by Seamus Coleman aside, the 0-0 draw was a hugely physical encounter anyway and O’Neill has released a number of his starters from Friday night back to their clubs. 

It means he can take this chance to cast an eye over some new faces with Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane and Preston striker Daryl Horgan among others likely to feature in a much-changed line-up ahead of their next meaningful game in June against Austria.

A point against the Welsh probably benefited the hosts more despite relinquishing top spot in Group E on goal difference to Serbia, but once again highlighted there is very little in the way of quality amongst the current crop of Irish players.  

They work hard, seem to all be reading from the same hymnsheet and will compete until the final whistle, but a distinct lack of creativity is a problem while injuries have left them short up front – Jon Walters is back with Stoke so it leaves just Shane Long as the only recognised, experienced striker.

Ireland certainly turned the heat up in the closing stages after Wales had been reduced to 10 men as they lay siege to the opposition goal but could not find that difference-maker despite the efforts of second-half substitute Aiden McGeady and Man of the Match James McClean.

A very similar set of circumstances is in front of them again with the visit of Heimir Hallgrimsson’s outfit, who are going to be tough to open up.

Hallgrimsson will be without three of his best players however, including star turn Gylfi Sigurdsson, following the 2-1 victory over Kosovo at the weekend. 

While fellow Euro 2016 upstarts Wales have dipped a bit in form, England’s conquerors are going well in this qualifying campaign and sit in second place behind Croatia thanks to wins as well over Finland and Turkey.

New boys Kosovo pressed them hard and grabbed a well-worked consolation after Iceland failed to clear a corner properly but the visitors’ (the game was actually played in Albania) greater experience saw them over the line.

“It won’t be a passing, friendly game,” Hallgrimsson said in his press conference ahead of the Dublin showdown. 

“There will be battles everywhere and we can’t only play an inexperienced team so it will be a strong but experimental side.”

The FAI are hopeful of another decent turnout at the Aviva to generate an atmosphere with a crowd of 40,000-plus anticipated settling down to watch two evenly-matched performers.

A low goal tally is probably in the offing and under 2.5 in total has been priced up accordingly at odds-on, so I am going to tentatively make a small investment on the stalemate with neither holding an obvious upper hand.

Holland's Euro 2016 qualification nightmare has seemingly spilled over into the World Cup campaign and they've acted swiftly by dispatching Danny Blind after Saturday's 2-0 defeat in Bulgaria.

Having drawn with Sweden and been beaten at home by France in the autumn, the Oranje sit fourth in qualification Group A and will be looking to turn things around in their three matches before resuming with a trip to the section's whipping boys Luxembourg in June, starting with Italy on Tuesday.

The Italians, by contrast, are unbeaten in Group G, behind Spain only on goal difference, and have held their form extremely well since the summer.

Their sole subsequent defeat came in a friendly with France in September and draws against Spain and Germany (friendly) highlight they've not only performed to expectations against lesser lights but held their own in top company.

Both sides look sure to make a raft of chances and Stefan de Vrij, the 17-year-old given a surprise debut by the Dutch at the weekend, may well be given another chance considering Under-21s chief Fred Grim is the man trusted with the caretaker manager's post.

Perhaps more likely is the recall of the experienced Wesley Sneijder to give the home side a bit of backbone, but in all honesty it's hard to gauge how low confidence really is in the camp at the moment and even a second-string Italy side capitalising on any instability, in the defensive areas in particular, looks a distinct possibility.

The visitors are favourites around the 7/4 mark and rightly so looking at the recent head-to-head records (the Dutch have won once in 12 meetings since the late 70's), while a win to nil enhances the price to 100/30, which rates the best business for those looking for an investment at the Amsterdam ArenA.

France play Spain in the night's other eyecatching fixture and neither side has been beaten since losing to Portugal and Italy respectively at the Euros.

Both arrive in confident mood after weekend victories in the qualifiers and we could be in for a vibrant encounter with plenty of youthful, attacking options to call upon.

Dortmund's Ousmane Dembele has six goals and nine assists from his 15 starts in the Bundesliga this year and looks likely to be given more experience for France, along with Kylian Mbappe, who got 10 minutes against Luxembourg.

Alvaro Morata seems likely to lead the Spain attackin place of the absent Diego Costa, while Koke could be pushing for a start too for the visitors but the best bet, if given the chance, is Real Madrid's Isco to make his mark.

The 24-year-old has chipped in for club and country this season, scoring eight goals compared to five in total last term,  and he's scored in his last two outings for Spain - at Wembley in November and Friday's win over Israel.

He's 6/1 in the anytime market to make it three on the bounce and that looks too big given France are prone to shipping the odd goal even if Didier Deschamps' men prove good enough to win on the night.

Where to watch on TV:
France v Spain - ITV4 from 1940BST
Republic Of Ireland v Iceland - Premier Sports from 1900BST 

Posted at 1615 on 27/03/17 BST.