BACKA TOPOLA (SERBIA) (ITALPRESS) – Even playing on neutral ground in Serbia, behind closed doors, wasn’t enough to avoid trouble. The second Nations League match between Ireland and Israel, which ended 1–1, was marked by a tense atmosphere—both on the pitch and off it. At halftime, the two teams clashed, and Ireland’s fitness coach, Damien Doyle, accused an Israeli player of spitting at him. “I don’t want to get into that specific issue, but that’s how things have gone in these two matches. There was tension,” commented Heimir Hallgrimsson, the ‘Boys in Green’ manager, speaking to Off The Ball. “The spitting incident? I didn’t see it. It will be reviewed, likely along with everything else that happened between the two teams. I felt they were trying to intimidate us right from kickoff, but I have to give the players a lot of credit for staying calm. It could have been a match full of yellow and red cards, but we kept our composure.” For his part, Israeli manager Ran Ben-Shimon countered: “At halftime, I was in the dressing room—in my own room—with my staff. I didn’t see anything. Once I have the chance to verify the facts, I’ll let you know.”

However, Ben-Shimon made it clear that there was no element of “revenge” against Jayson Molumby, who—during the first leg—had reported alleged racist chants by opposing fans directed at two of his teammates to the referee. “There was nothing personal against him; we don’t do things like that—we simply don’t—that’s not the kind of people we are,” he clarified. “I would never tell one of my players to play aggressively against an opponent. Sometimes I tell my players they need to be aggressive, but I would never tell them to hurt someone. That isn’t who we are; we are human beings.”

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews