EVEN though only 1,124 of them have tickets, half the country seems to be in Prague and the other half will be locked to their TV screens on Thursday night.
The Republic of Ireland meet Czechia in a nerve-jangling play-off semi-final and talisman Seamus Coleman says the Boys in Green are driven to get to the World Cup finals to make the Irish people proud.
“It would be amazing to get to a World Cup,” said the Donegal native.
“As a player you do want to do as much as you can in the game. After the last games, seeing what it did for our country, how it lifted our people, how it genuinely made people happier and gave them something to talk about, to get up in the morning and talk about was so important.
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“On behalf of myself and all the players, as much as we want to do it for ourselves, the manager and all the staff behind the scenes, we want to do it for the people of our country as well.
“To see how the nation is feeling now is incredible and we’ve got a duty to try and make them ever happier.”
Coleman played in the European Championship play-off in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2015 in a pea-soup fog in Zenica. A Robbie Brady goal that night set Ireland up for a 2-0 win in the second leg that sent them through to the finals.
“It was a tough game, it was a hostile environment and I think this game will be the same,” he said.
“This group has come through a lot and I think the manager has touched on the hurdles this group has overcome. I think we’re ready for it, it’s going to be tough, it’s going to be firey out there.
“Maybe two years ago it would have been a lot for the young lads to take but I think everyone now has stood up and are prepared for what’s to come and we absolutely, no doubt about it, understand that it’s going to be a tough game for us, but it’s going to be a tough game for them as well.
“We don’t know how the game is going to go and always when you put on the green shirt you want to be felt, you want them to know that you’re there.
“As well as that, calm heads and a controlled game is important. We don’t know what’s to come from them and their manager but we know we can control our own behaviours and our mindset going into the game.
“There has been change here but we want to focus on ourselves.”