The Republic of Ireland and Bulgaria will meet in a two-legged Nations League promotion/relegation play-off that starts on Thursday.
PA News Agency highlights some key topics for discussion ahead of the match in Plovdiv.
Back to square one
Six games into his tenure, head coach Hallgrimsson is still struggling to make up his mind. The Icelander described his side's recent 5-0 defeat to England as “disgraceful” and suggested some players had “given up”.
He apologised last week after his comments sparked outrage at home, expressing hope that League of Ireland players would be given the chance to further their careers abroad. With his achievements so far limited to a couple of narrow wins over Finland, Hallgrimsson will be keen to bring back some positivity.
General perspective
The immediate objective is to avoid relegation to League C, but Hallgrimsson's main goal is to qualify Ireland for next year's World Cup. Ireland have not participated in the tournament since 2002 and have often been eliminated early in qualifying campaigns.
The matches against Bulgaria and friendlies in June against Senegal and Luxembourg provide the final chances to prepare for the end of the 24-year wait. Portugal or Denmark, Hungary and Armenia will be Ireland's opponents in qualifying.
Keep the faith in Ferguson?
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
