Republic of Ireland vs. Georgia: World Cup 2018 Qualifying Live Stream, Preview

The Republic of Ireland will continue their bid to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup on Thursday when they host Georgia at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

The two teams know each other well after being drawn in the same qualifying group for UEFA Euro 2016, where Georgia played a key role in helping the Irish progress to the main tournament―their shock win over Scotland boosted Ireland's chances in the race for third place.

Ireland's official Twitter account shared this highlight from their win in Georgia:

Ireland started their World Cup qualifying campaign with a hard-fought 2-2 draw in Serbia, while Georgia lost 2-1 against Austria.

Here's everything you need to know for Thursday's qualifier:

Date: Thursday, October 6

Time: 7:45 p.m. BST

Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin

Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), WatchESPN (U.S.)

Preview

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Ireland manager Martin O'Neill has called up two new names for this key qualifier, as in-form Barnsley midfielder Conor Hourihane and goalkeeper Danny Rogers, who is on loan at Falkirk from Aberdeen, could make their debuts.

Shane Duffy returns from suspension and James McCarthy is also in the squad, despite the latter's injury concerns―he hasn't featured for Everton since the 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion on August 20.

Ireland assistant manager Roy Keane expects a difficult challenge, per the team's official Twitter account:

Georgia have never qualified for a major international tournament, but they've proved quite a handful for top teams in the past. In June, they beat Spain 1-0 in a friendly in Getafe, and they have plenty of talent in their squad.

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Spartak Moscow midfielder Jano Ananidze is finally making good on his impressive potential, and he scored the team's only goal in the loss against Austria. Empoli forward Levan Mchedlidze is also one to keep an eye on.

On paper, Georgia and Moldova are the weakest teams in Group D, and Miguel Delaney of the Irish Independent thinks it's key that the Boys in Green grab maximum points against both sides:

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So, if not quite king-makers, Georgia could well be qualification-makers. The importance of beating them is likely to be amplified in this 2018 World Cup qualification series because of how thoroughly congested and competitive Ireland's group is. With four sides of a similar level, the potential for slip-ups and dropped points will be high, meaning a maximum return against Georgia and Moldova will be almost essential. It would certainly be a strong foundation.

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Wales and Austria are the favourites to advance from Group D, and while the former are in the best form they've ever been in, the latter are prone to odd mistakes and poor results against teams they should be beating.

Serbia haven't qualified for a major tournament since 2010, but they also have the raw firepower to claim a handful of returns and challenge for a ticket to Russia.

West Bromwich Albion and Ireland's James McClean knows looking too far ahead and not beating Georgia could be a disaster:

Ireland have won all of their six qualification matches against Georgia, but each of those contests was a serious battle.

Only once did more than a single goal separate the two sides, and Georgia's impressive work rate in defence has only improved since Vladimir Weiss took over as manager.

Prediction: Ireland 1-0 Georgia