Roy Keane sings Troy Parrott’s praises after late drama in Budapest

The 23-year-old’s hat-trick secured Ireland’s place in the World Cup play-offs after their chances looked fairly bleak throughout the qualifying campaign.

Parrott also scored both of Ireland’s goals in Thursday’s stunning 2-0 victory over Portugal and has rightly earned all of the praise he is receiving.

Keane has been notoriously critical of Ireland over the years, but he had nothing negative to say after the historic scenes on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking on ITV, the former Ireland captain shared his appreciation for the recent performances that allowed the Boys in Green to be in this position.

Keane declared: "Fantastic, amazing.

Roy Keane.

"When you think the way they started the campaign, a draw and a defeat. To win today on the back of the Portugal result, fantastic.

"Great boost for the country and the team. The manager was heavily criticised but they’ve bounced back and got some momentum now.

"Parrott got a hat-trick. There was always talk about Parrott over the last few years, but he has stepped up in the last few days.

"Great achievement. Fingers crossed now for when they go to the play-offs…

"I’m not really too worried about the other teams at the moment! For Ireland to get back into the mix and have a chance, amazing."

Ireland will find out who lies in the way of a World Cup spot on Thursday, when the play-off draw takes place.

The Boys in Green have to win two matches, and then they could be on their way to North America next summer.

The play-offs have a different look to them than in previous years, with the classic two-legged tie thrown away.

They will be played in single-leg knockout matches, with a semi-final and a final.

Ireland will be one of 16 European teams in the play-offs, including 12 runners-up from the qualifying groups and four teams from the Nations League.

Out of these 16, four teams will make it to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.