Hallgrímsson will 'respect' Irish players' decision not to face Israel after Nations League draw
Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson says he will respect any individual player’s decision not to face Israel on a point of principle. Fears that his side could end up in the same Uefa Nations League pool were realised on Thursday night when France’s World Cup winner Patrick Vieira drew the top seeds along with Austria and Kosovo into group B3 at the ceremony in Brussels. Hallgrímsson last October questioned the consistency of Uefa and Fifa not suspending Israel when they had immediately applied that sanction on Russia for their invasion of Ukraine in 2022. A UN Commission of Inquiry report has found that said Israel had committed genocide during the war in Gaza and the motion highlighted two breaches of Uefa laws, violations which Israel dispute. Furthermore, Irish football delegates passed a motion on a majority 74/7 at a November EGM requesting Uefa to ban Israeli international and club teams from all European competitions. That body of 145 members may now decide to raise another motion for Ireland to boycott the two fixtures, due to be held between September and November. FAI President Paul Cooke this week reaffirmed their intention to fulfil any fixtures against Israel, pointing out to do otherwise risks sanctions such as forfeiture and expulsion. That position was reinforced in an FAI statement released immediately after the draw.Cooke nor chief executive David Courell attended the draw but declined invitations to address media queries, leaving the football manager to face the heat. He’s yet to commit his future to the job beyond next month’s World Cup playoff but despite him concentrating on the football side, his players might decide to make it his problems.'I need to focus on the football thing' Asked if he had an issue with any individual boycotting the game, he was philosophical. “It’s obviously every player's decision to play for the national team or not,” he outlined. “So it's going to be for whatever reason that is. It's every player's decision if they want to play for the national team or not.” He wasn’t budging on his own personal views, enunciated five months ago. “Yeah, I'm on record saying that and I stand by that. “But it's not my decision if you play or not against them or what decision is taken on a higher level. “I am the head coach. I need to focus on the football thing. I hope when we play them, the supporters will support Ireland and support us to do good when we play against them. “There’s no reason for me to do it (get involved) because my opinion is not relevant in this case."It’s better for me not to be expressing opinions on this because it’s not taken at my level. Everything else is taken on a higher level so I’m just going to focus on the football side. The FAI have released their statement. “So in that sense, I'm the head coach and should be focusing on football. That's my job and I'm going to stick to that one.The FAI is already facing pressure to adopt a principled rather than pragmatic approach. Sinn Féin spokesperson on Culture, Communications and Sport, Joanna Byrne TD, also co-chair of Drogheda United, said: “In November, the FAI voted to submit a motion to UEFA to ban Israel from its European club and international competitions. That was the correct moral and principled position to take. “Therefore, I am extremely angry and dismayed that the FAI have confirmed they will play against Israel.”
