Sport
Ireland coach Hallgrímsson before match against Israel: 'We play against genocide'
Ahead of the matchup with Israel in the Nations League, Hallgrímsson provided inflammatory statements, compared Israel to Russia and argued he doesn't understand why only one was banned.
· Source: Walla. Photo as published in the article
Coach of the Irish national team Heimir Hallgrímsson sharpened the tone against Israel a week before the match between the teams in the Nations League, compared Israel to Russia again and said 'we play against genocide,' but admitted that 'I probably said too much.'
A week before the matchup with the Israeli national team in the Nations League, Iceland's Irish national team coach Heimir Hallgrímsson sharpened the tone against Israel. According to reports, at a press conference ahead of the international window, he said: 'We don't play with genocide, we play against genocide. We play against Israel, we don't play with Israel.'
Hallgrímsson previously argued that in his opinion Israel should be banned like Russia, and this time repeated the claim. According to him, 'I still haven't received any explanation why one is banned and the other is not.'
According to reports, the Irish federation decided to stand for both matches but took unusual steps: the first match will be held on September 27 in Debrecen, Hungary, and Ireland's home match on October 4 was moved from Dublin to Backa Topola in Serbia and will be held without an audience. According to reports in Ireland, RTÉ will not have a regular studio and commentary broadcast around the matches and will use the international feed.
The coach admitted he has no experience in such situations: 'There is no seminar in the UEFA Pro license that prepares you for something like this.' He also said: 'I probably said too much, but nothing prepares you for something like this.'
Source: Walla
