According to The Daily Telegraph, after Irish goalkeeper Bazunu stated he does not wish to play in the Nations League match against Israel, other players are also considering a collective refusal to participate in protest against Israel's actions in Gaza.

The players held a meeting at the team hotel in Hungary this morning to discuss a collective boycott of the match. It is understood that Bazunu, who plays for Bolton, expressed his reluctance to participate during a team meeting on Friday, with several teammates considering joining him.

Earlier this week, Irish captain O'Shea stressed that every player should be free to express their opinions on the matter, and that mutual respect for differing views was crucial. Against a backdrop of heightened political tensions, public calls in Ireland for the team to boycott the match are growing. On Monday, a protest took place outside the team hotel in Dublin. This followed an open letter from "Irish Sport for Palestine" signed by more than 160 Irish athletes, calling on the Irish Football Association to withdraw from the match to demonstrate opposition to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

O'Shea said: "We need to respect everyone's opinions and thoughts. We need to sit down and take time to talk about it, because this is something that needs to be properly discussed. That's the most important thing; this is not something to be taken lightly. Whatever decision we make as players in the end, it has to be done as a group and everyone's opinion must be respected."

Last November, the FAI voted to submit a motion to UEFA. If approved, the motion would ban Israel from participating in club and national team competitions. The proposal cited two alleged violations of UEFA statutes by the Israeli Football Association, including organizing club competitions in occupied Palestinian territory without the consent of the Palestinian Football Association, and allegedly failing to implement effective anti-racism policies.

Earlier this week, comments from Ireland's head coach Hallgrímsson drew criticism from Israel. He stated that the team was "fighting against genocide." Hallgrímsson said: "We are not fighting alongside genocide; we are fighting against genocide. We are playing against Israel, not alongside Israel."

In response, the Israeli FA stated Monday evening: "We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields and have a considerable number of Nobel Prize winners. Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for the stupidity, ignorance, and hypocrisy demonstrated by the Irish coach. We are not standing with ignorance, hypocrisy, and stupidity; we are playing against the coach who embodies these characteristics."

Prior to this statement, Israeli media reported that the Israeli FA was considering filing a complaint with UEFA regarding Hallgrímsson's comments. For security reasons, Israel is unable to host home matches. The match against Ireland was originally scheduled to take place in Debrecen, Hungary, and due to protests in Ireland, the return match next month will also be played on neutral ground in Serbia.

Traduit par IA.

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