Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill has highlighted the importance of the upcoming Euro2016 qualifier against Scotland.

The Irish lost their initial fixture to the Scots in Glasgow and now face an uphill battle to qualify for next summer's European Championships as they prepare for the June 13 meeting in Dublin.

O'Neill said: "First of all, I wouldn't hide away from the fact that it's a very important game for us. We've been beaten in Scotland and we'd like to win the return game and it would give us a massive boost.

"If we are beaten in the game, then of course it makes life a lot more difficult in terms of trying to qualify, but there is plenty of football to play.

"There is always pressure on you to win games at this level and I think we should embrace that and not shy away from it."

Ireland currently sit two points behind Scotland who occupy the play-off spot in Group D. The top two automatic qualification spots for Euro2016 are occupied by Poland and Germany.