Ireland Coach Says Israel 'Tried to Intimidate Us' Amid Spitting Allegation in 1-1 Draw

An unnamed Israel player has been accused of spitting at a member of the Republic of Ireland staff during Sunday’s 1-1 UEFA Nations League draw in Serbia, in an allegation that has not been independently verified. Ireland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson told Off The Ball that Israel were “trying to intimidate us from kick-off,” while Israel coach Ran Ben-Shimon said he saw nothing, BBC Sport reports. UEFA initially said it had received no official complaint, Flashscore reports, but on October 6 it appointed an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate the allegation after reviewing the official match reports, Reuters reports.

What is being alleged about the half-time incident?

Ireland’s head of athletic performance Damien Doyle alleged he was spat at by an Israel player as the teams clashed leaving the pitch at half-time, the Irish Times reported via BBC Sport. On television pictures from the TSC Arena tunnel, a voice can be heard saying “he spat on me” as the players headed for the dressing rooms.

Referee Juan Martinez Munuera is understood not to have seen the incident and stepped in to stop the confrontation escalating, Flashscore reports. Reuters noted it could not independently verify the allegation or establish its original source, and no Israel player has been named in connection with it.

What did the two head coaches say about it?

Two different answers, in two different rooms. At the post-match press conference, Hallgrimsson declined to give details: “I was there. I’m not going to comment. It’s something a disciplinary committee will look at,” he told reporters, via Reuters.

Speaking to Off The Ball, the Ireland coach was fuller. “[It] was an accusation of spitting on someone but I didn’t see it,” he said, via BBC Sport. “I felt like they were trying to intimidate us from kick-off but I give a lot of credit to the players to stay calm. It could have been a game of yellow and red cards but we were composed.” Ben-Shimon said he was in his dressing room with his staff at half-time: “I didn’t see anything. When I get the chance to check I will get back to you.” He also rejected suggestions his players had been overly aggressive, Reuters reports.

What has UEFA done since the match?

UEFA has opened a formal investigation. In a statement on October 6, UEFA said it had reviewed the official reports, which contained the allegation of an incident in or around the tunnel at half-time, and had appointed an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate potential misconduct by player(s), Reuters reports.

That is a change from the position at publication, when UEFA had received no official complaint. The inspector route does not require a complaint from either association: the official match reports themselves were enough to start the process. The Times reports the FAI is also carrying out its own investigation into separate allegations from the first meeting in Debrecen, including alleged racial abuse aimed at Ireland forward Adam Idah. An investigation is not a finding, and the spitting allegation itself remains unverified, with no player named or charged.

What happens next in the UEFA investigation?

The inspector will gather evidence, which can include the match officials’ reports, tunnel footage from TSC Arena and statements from both associations, before deciding whether to recommend disciplinary charges. Any charge would then go to a UEFA disciplinary body, the route Hallgrimsson pointed to after the match.

The same window had already seen UEFA bar two Israeli journalists from the post-match press conference after a confrontation at Ireland’s pre-game media session, Sky Sports reported via SportBible. In a calmer corner of the same international window, Cavan Sullivan became the youngest scorer in USMNT history; this fixture produced no such clean storyline.

Update, October 6: this article was updated to report UEFA’s appointment of an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate the half-time allegation, and the FAI’s separate internal investigation. The original allegation remains unverified.

Why was the match played behind closed doors in Serbia?

Because the football was never the only story. The FAI staged the match behind closed doors in Backa Topola amid pressure to withdraw from the fixtures, and Ireland had already beaten Israel 3-0 behind closed doors in Hungary a week earlier, Reuters reports. There were no pre-match handshakes, players bowed their heads during the opposing anthem, and both teams wore black armbands with different meanings: Ireland’s for all lives lost in the conflict in Gaza, Israel’s in memory of those murdered in the October 7 massacre, Reuters reports.

Protests followed Ireland through the window, including tennis balls thrown onto the pitch during their home match against Austria in Dublin, in a week when a very different tennis-ball protest targeted Celtic owner Dermot Desmond at the Dunhill Links.

What happened in the match itself?

A poor, tense 1-1 draw. Troy Parrott put Ireland ahead with a 39th-minute penalty, and Israel captain Dor Peretz levelled immediately after half-time with Israel’s first effort on target, Reuters reports. Israel hit the woodwork twice in the second half, and neither side found a winner.

The draw left Ireland third in Group B3 on five points, three behind leaders Austria with Kosovo second on goal difference, and Israel bottom with two points, Reuters reports. For one of the most scrutinised international football coaches of this window, though, the table was not the relief. “I’m absolutely delighted this is finished,” Hallgrimsson said. “It’s taken a toll out of us all. I wish no national team to go through what we have gone through for the last two weeks.”