World Cup playoff semi-final: Czech Republic 2 [Schick 27 pen; Krejčí 86] Republic of Ireland 2 [Parrott 19 pen; Kovář 23 og] [aet; Czech Republic win 4-3 on penalties]
The Czech Republic will host Denmark next Tuesday for a place in this summer’s World Cup after Matej Kovar denied Finn Azaz and Alan Browne in a penalty shoot-out before Jan Kliment’s strike ended the Republic of Ireland’s dream of bridging a 10-year gap to feature at a major tournament.
Ireland, after a heroic display at the Fortuna Arena, were in pole position to reach North America 2026 when Robbie Brady’s cool strike gave them a 3-2 lead in the shoot-out and Caoimhín Kelleher denied Mojmir Chytil.
It was simply not to be.
Heimir Hallgrímsson’s team return home to face North Macedonia in a friendly at a sold-out Aviva Stadium, with the upside being that the preparations for Euro 2028 on home soil can begin now.
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'It's really hard to take': Ireland's penalty heartbreak after early dominance
The hurt will last until then, and the regrets will linger far beyond. Ireland gave up a two-goal advantage when Troy Parrott’s first-half penalty and an own goal by Kovar were cancelled out by Patrik Schick’s spot kick and an 86th-minute equaliser from Czech captain Ladislav Krejci.
Ireland dominated the opening exchanges. All the pressure came down the right flank where Chiedozie Ogbene harassed and harried Krejci at every turn. Ogbene was a marvel for 96 minutes, from the moment he forced Krejci to concede an early corner that Ryan Manning whipped into the box.
The Czechs cleared but Kelleher fired it back towards Ogbene and Krejci – a battle within the war – as Jake O’Brien was offered his first long throw of the night. The ball ricocheted around the box before a deft touch by Azaz invited Nathan Collins to wallop a shot that was deflected off the crossbar for another corner.
Collins nodded Azaz’s delivery wide of Kovar’s post and the Czechs had weathered the first storm.
Pavel Sulc even drew a save from Kelleher before the VAR, Bram van Driessche, intervened. The Belgian official in the video-booth noticed Vladimir Darida catching Collins’s foot in the Czech box. It was innocuous contact but enough for Swedish referee Glenn Nybeg to point to the penalty spot.
Séamus Coleman got hold of the ball, dismissing Czech attempts at mind games before handing it to the prolific Ireland centre forward. Parrott finished to his left with enough venom to beat Kovar’s flailing glove in the 19th minute.
Inside four minutes they led 2-0. Again, Manning sent a corner to the back post where Dara O’Shea’s header hit two Czech bodies before bouncing off Kovar and over the goal-line.
The drama was only beginning. Within seconds, Schick’s penalty made it 2-1 after Manning tugged Krejci’s jersey in the box. The Czech skipper demanded a yellow card and Nyberg obliged.
It was a massive moment. Mainly because the Czechs seemed ready to implode.
Styles make fights, and this contest was no different. Krejci was lucky to avoid a booking for cutting down Ogbene as Kelleher continually found his target in transition.
The duels were littered with studs and elbows. Nyberg remained a central figure. As he was when Ireland beat Portugal in Dublin last October.
Azaz should have generated more power in his shot before half-time but his curling effort was easily gathered by Kovar.
In an instant, Coleman was punching the air having dragged his 37-year-old body across Schick to deny the Bayer Leverkusen striker a shot.
It was a manic, engrossing affair. As soon as Nyberg’s whistle sounded for half-time, Hallgrímsson casually strolled on to the pitch, like a man watching a Sunday league match, to whisper a few words in the ears of Collins and Coleman.
The two Irish leaders nodded in agreement before disappearing down the tunnel.
And breathe.
Ireland only had 43 per cent possession but they managed to conjure six attempts on goal to just two from the Czech Republic.
Over in Copenhagen, it was 0-0 despite Denmark bombarding the North Macedonia goal for 45 minutes.
Miroslav Koubek, the 74-year-old Czech manager, played his hand at the start of the second half by introducing West Ham’s Tomas Soucek for Darida in midfield. The former captain immediately opened a friendly dialogue with Nyberg.
It was the Czechs’ turn to hem Ireland in; Kelleher needed to tip Krejci’s spinning header on to the roof of his net.
But Ireland refused to sit back and Jayson Molumby’s snap shot bounced off the post.
Nobody could settle. Midfield ceased to exist with both teams taking turns flooding the other’s box. O’Shea and Collins were quietly magnificent under scrappy, dropping balls.
As Koubek constantly patrolled his rectangle, Hallgrímsson spent plenty of time sitting in the dugout as if he truly believed his promise that Ireland would qualify for the World Cup.
On the hour mark, the noise inside the Fortuna Arena from 19,137 supporters reached deafening levels as corner after corner was cleared by brave Irish headers.
The dam had burst in Copenhagen: North Macedonia trailed 4-0, meaning Denmark would be spending next Tuesday night in either Prague or Dublin.
Manning and Jack Taylor made way on 68 minutes for Brady and Browne, two old heads with 111 caps between sent in to see Ireland home.
An obvious problem was Nyberg had stopped awarding frees to the visitors. In quick succession, Brady, Collins and Parrott went down under contact. The ref waved play on.
Coleman lifted the siege, finding Ogbene in the channel once more and he heroically earned a corner out of David Jurasek.
Parrott nearly made it 3-1 from another O’Brien slingshot and O’Shea flick-on, but Ireland were denied by Kovar’s wonderful one-handed save.
Pre-match, Koubek described Krejci as a “born leader” and he lived up to the billing, nudging past O’Shea at the front post for an 86th-minute equaliser from Michal Sadílek’s delivery.
The Czech skipper almost won the playoff in the last second of normal time but his tame touch was smothered by Kelleher.
Coleman and Ogbene, both monumental, ran out of steam to allow Adam Idah and Jimmy Dunne enter the fray. Idah dribbled through on goal in the first half of extra-time only to be denied by Robin Hranac’s perfect slide tackle.
Sammie Szomdics only lasted five minutes after a collision with Stepan Chaloupek required urgent medical attention. The match officials deemed it just a free-kick before Harvey Vale arrived for his debut.
CZECH REPUBLIC: Kovar; Holes (Chaloupek 46), Hranac, Krejci (capt); Coufal (Karabek 83), Darida (Soucek 46), Provod, Jurasek (Sadilek 83); Sulc (Kliment 103), Chory (Chytil 73), Schick.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Kelleher; Coleman (Dunne 96), O’Brien, Collins (capt), O’Shea, Manning (Browne 68); Taylor (Brady 68), Molumby (Szmodics 115 - Vale 120); Ogbene (Idah 96), Azaz; Parrott.
Referee: Glenn Nyberg (Sweden).
