“I will never have a better night in my whole life. It is a fairy tale. You can’t even dream about something like that.”
When Troy Parrott reported for Republic of Ireland duty last Monday he could not have imagined that six days later he’d have propelled his country into the World Cup play-offs.
First came a stunning 2-0 win over Portugal. Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card grabbed headlines, but it was Parrott who had Ireland supporters singing his name after he scored both goals. Then, at the Puskas Arena on Sunday, the AZ Alkmaar striker was the hero again. He levelled twice against Hungary and produced a dramatic 96th-minute winner as Ireland came from behind to win 3-2. Dublin Airport even jokingly rebranded itself “Troy Parrott International Airport” on social media in tribute to the 23-year-old’s exploits.
Two games. Five goals. Parrott has played a huge part in keeping Ireland’s hopes alive of reaching a World Cup for the first time since 2022. For fans of AZ and the Eredivisie this form may not be surprising; for many others Parrott is still the player once viewed as a Tottenham youngster who hadn’t fulfilled the early promise. His recent run shows that leaving a big Premier League club can revive a career — and produce some of life’s best moments.
Parrott’s hat-trick against Hungary was the first competitive treble for an Ireland player since Robbie Keane in 2014 and the first-ever hat-trick by an Irish player in an away competitive match. He also became only the fourth Ireland player to score two or more goals in consecutive games, joining Jimmy Dunne (1936), Robbie Keane (2013) and Callum Robinson (2021).
Beginnings at Spurs
A Dublin native who started with Belvedere, Parrott joined Tottenham’s youth setup in 2017 at 15. Two years later he signed professional terms and began training with the first team. He made his senior debut in a Carabao Cup tie against Colchester in September 2019 and appeared as a substitute in the Premier League under Jose Mourinho, but opportunities were limited — partly because he trained alongside Harry Kane.
Parrott made just two Premier League appearances for Spurs and then followed the now-familiar path of multiple EFL loans.
Loans and the move abroad
He spent five loan spells away from Tottenham, four in England. A move to Millwall in August 2020 was blighted by injury and yielded 14 appearances without a goal before he was recalled. He then joined Ipswich in League One, scoring twice in 18 games. Season-long loans at MK Dons (2021/22) and Preston (2022/23) followed. At MK Dons he helped reach the play-offs and scored in the semi-final second leg, but the club lost on aggregate. Another underwhelming spell at Preston meant Parrott needed a bigger change.
That change came in the form of a move to the Netherlands. A loan to Excelsior proved transformative. Parrott says the most important thing was rediscovering enjoyment in football without the heavy pressure he’d felt on previous loans. At Excelsior he learned to prioritise being in the box and finishing — lessons that substantially improved his goalscoring output. He scored 17 goals in all competitions for Excelsior (10 in the league) and, despite scoring hat-tricks in both the semi-final and final of the relegation play-offs, could not prevent the club’s relegation.
Career record (games in all competitions)
Tottenham – 4 apps, 0 goals
Millwall (loan) – 14 apps, 0 goals
Ipswich (loan) – 18 apps, 2 goals
MK Dons (loan) – 47 apps, 10 goals
Preston (loan) – 34 apps, 4 goals
Excelsior (loan) – 32 apps, 17 goals
AZ Alkmaar – 61 apps, 33 goals
Flourishing at AZ Alkmaar
Parrott’s breakthrough earned him a permanent transfer from Spurs to AZ Alkmaar in the summer of 2024, for a reported fee of around £6.7m. He has said he has no regrets about his Tottenham time and is grateful for the experience, but the move to AZ allowed him to showcase his talents consistently at a big club playing in Europe.
At AZ he continued to score freely. In 2024/25 he netted 14 goals in 30 Eredivisie matches — the league’s third-highest tally — including four in a 9-1 win over Heerenveen. His 2025/26 season began explosively with 10 goals in seven games across all competitions before a knee injury in late August interrupted his momentum. Since returning he has added more league goals and helped AZ sit ahead of Ajax near the top of the table. He is contracted at AZ until 2029, but his recent international form has rekindled talk of a Premier League return.
International resurgence and what’s next
Parrott arrived at the international break with five goals in 31 caps, having scored only once since 2022. In two November games he doubled his international tally and delivered the decisive moments that have Ireland dreaming again. While he has sometimes squandered chances for his country even when in good club form, the two recent performances suggest his club and international games are beginning to align.
Parrott himself admits the night in Hungary may be the pinnacle so far, but the play-offs and potentially a first World Cup in years lie ahead. With momentum and confidence on both his and Ireland’s side after this international break, more memorable nights could be on the way.