'He can do everything' - Parrott carries Irish hopes

ByMatt Gault

BBC Sport NI senior journalist in Prague

For Republic of Ireland fans, the nerves really started to kick in on Thursday night.

Just hours after Heimir Hallgrimsson unveiled his 25-man squad for the World Cup play-off semi-final against the Czech Republic, Irish eyes turned to Prague early to watch Troy Parrott in action for AZ Alkmaar.

Considering it was Parrott's goalscoring heroics that propelled the Republic of Ireland to this position, the fans would have been forgiven for watching from behind the sofa.

Thankfully for them, an injury scare was not forthcoming.

Instead, Parrott left an early mark on the Czech capital, scoring and bagging an assist in his side's 4-0 Uefa Conference League win over Slavia Prague.

Less than 72 hours later, Parrott started again for Alkmaar. He played all 90 minutes in a 3-0 loss to Groningen, but supporters drew a collective sigh of relief when he came through unscathed.

"Everyone was keeping an eye on his game," said Republic of Ireland assistant coach John O'Shea.

"Listen, the way it works for the weekend when the boys meet up, you're nervous as soon as the games start on Friday. We had [players in games on] Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday."

Having avoided any late injury scares, the Republic of Ireland squad assembled on Sunday before the biggest week of their international careers.

The mission is clear: win two games and they qualify for the country's first World Cup since 2002. Anything less and the journey will end in heartache.

Victory in Prague on Thursday (19:45 GMT) is the first job - and it is difficult to escape the feeling that a nation's hopes are pinned on Parrott.

The hype surrounding the 24-year-old Dubliner this week was inevitable.

His five-goal haul in November - two to see off Portugal and a hat-trick to stun Hungary - made him an Irish hero.

The post-Budapest delirium extended as far as Dublin Airport even renaming itself the 'Troy Parrott Airport' on its official X account.

However, as has been well documented, Parrott's journey to becoming his national team's talisman has been far from smooth.

An exciting youth prospect, he managed just four appearances for Tottenham and found only varying degrees of solace in loan spells Millwall, Ipswich, MK Dons and Preston.

But a move to the Netherlands gave his career a much-needed shot in the arm.

His season-long loan at Excelsior in 2023-24 yielded 17 goals and secured him a permanent move from Spurs to AZ Alkmaar, where he has excelled.

In 88 games, he has 48 goals and 12 assists. This season, it's 36 goal contributions (28 goals, eight assists) in 41 outings.

Not since Robbie Keane have the Republic of Ireland possessed such a prolific frontman, and encouragingly, Parrott's goals have not dried up since Budapest.

He has netted 15 goals in 27 appearances. There has been the odd slip-up - a missed 99th-minute panenka penalty attempt in Alkmaar's loss to FC Twente for example - but he has looked sharp in recent weeks with four goals in as many games before leaving for international duty.

"Troy's reaping the rewards of the practice and dedication he's given to himself and his career over the past few years," said O'Shea.

"You've seen other strikers have plenty of loan spells in English leagues and it takes a few spells for everything to click in terms of the physicality and mentality side of a player developing.

"Game understanding was always there with Troy, even from that underage capacity he had for scoring goals.

"It was just a case of knuckling down, doing the hard yards, doing the work, making sure he was staying as fit as possible and being clever enough to pick his club, he's playing in Europe, playing that level.

"He's been very clever and calculated about where he's gone to develop."

Parrott doubled his international tally to 10 in the space of four days in November. Before Portugal, his sole competitive international goal came in a Nations League win over Scotland in June 2022.

Foreshadowing his greatest moment, he also struck late to beat Hungary in a 2024 friendly.

While it took a while for him to hit his straps at international level, Nathan Collins - who played with him at under-21 level - never doubted Parrott's credentials.

"In football, sometimes, it doesn't click on the pitch. That doesn't take away from being a good footballer, from understanding the game or knowing how good he is," said Collins.

"There are loads of different variables and reasons as to why he might not be clicking at that time.

"But there has always been a footballer in Troy. I am so happy now that it is shining and showing how good he is."

With Evan Ferguson's injury-enforced absence, Parrott and Adam Idah are the only players in Hallgrimsson's current squad to have scored in this qualifying campaign.

Parrott should, however, be ably supported by playmaker Finn Azaz - who created his second in Budapest with a deft chip over the Hungarian defence - and perhaps Harvey Vale, who is pushing for a place in Hallgrimsson's team after switching his allegiance from England.

Playing away from home against a physical Czech Republic side, the Republic of Ireland may not expect to see much of the ball on Thursday.

It may limit Parrott's chances in front of goal, but judging by the noises coming out of the hosts' camp, they do not feel he will need a second invitation.

"He is the type of player, Parrott, who can do everything. He is a killer," said Czech Republic manager Miroslav Koubek.

"Of course there are special measures and instructions to try to nullify him but you know what these players do, they are world stars, they have special ability and can show it."