Press conference cut short

Ireland’s press officer Kieran Crowley ended the Republic’s media briefing with head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson in Backa Topola, Serbia.

Tensions before Israel match

Ireland beat Israel 3-0 in Hungary after players wore armbands and bowed during the match amid Gaza war concerns.

Israeli journalist questions

An Israeli journalist asked Hallgrímsson if Irish players supported a group that 'murdered' 170 Israeli passengers including 27 children.

“What do you say about the people that you support? Their ideology is based on murder, just this week, one of them tried to kill 170 Israeli passengers, including 27 innocent children and thousands of others”

FAI denies claims

An FAI official stated that Irish players calling Israeli players 'monkeys' was 'completely untrue'.

“that is completely untrue”

Hallgrímsson on future matches

Hallgrímsson urged Uefa to consider whether Ireland and Israel should meet again after the match.

“That’s maybe a question that is not for me to answer. But given that we now have the possibility of looking back and seeing all the things that happened, I think Uefa must take that into consideration that they can’t have this happening again just for players’ welfare”

Team coping strategy

Ireland’s team conducts pre-match prayer and huddle to 'cool heads' before games amid high pressure.

“We do a little prayer and a huddle with the players and all the staff, just to cool our heads before we go on to the pitch”