'We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide': Ireland boss on facing Israel

HEIMIR HALLGRÍMSSON HAS once again defended the FAI’s decision to fulfil the upcoming Nations League games with Israel as he admitted this is the most testing period of his managerial career.

The Republic of Ireland boss has continually reiterated his stance that he doesn’t understand why Uefa have banned Russia from competing yet not done the same with Israel despite both being in breach of the governing body’s statutes.

Hallgrímsson revealed no one at either Uefa or the FAI has been able to explain the difference in that treatment, and he wanted to make it clear that by taking to the field on 27 September and 4 October it was not normalising Israel’s presence on this stage.

“When people know that these games are going to be played, we’ll get the people that are ready to support us in the games. And I’ve said before, we’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide. So we’re playing against Israel. We’re not playing with Israel,” Hallgrímsson said.

“So hopefully we can play good football. That’s my job here. I’m hired here to think about the football things and others on other things. So hopefully that’s going to be… I know it’s going to be a lot of noise, and it’s my job to try to protect the players and try to get them to focus on the things that matter on the pitch. But it’s going to be tough, 100%.”

Hallgrímsson says he has never experienced a situation like this while in football.

“And in life, I’ve never been in charge of something like this. So again, I’m unexperienced in these matters. And hopefully I’ve probably stepped into some pits that I shouldn’t have stepped, that’s probably something I should have not said.

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“But I’ve tried to be honest, I’ve tried to tell you what I think, and might even, because questions will come, and you haven’t prepared that angle, so probably it would have been nice to be three or four sitting together, and I can direct the question to someone else.

“But I hope you appreciate I’ve tried to be as honest as I can be. I’ve probably said too much, but nothing prepares you for this. There’s not a Uefa Pro Licence seminar that prepares you for something like this.

“It’s probably the same for you guys, it’s new for you guys, we sat here 20, 30 minutes and we haven’t spoken a word about football. And this is a press conference on a squad playing four national games. For you guys, so you can’t prepare for this.”

Hallgrímsson is on record previously saying Israel should be suspended from competing just like Russia, and he pointed out again that “I haven’t had any explanation why one is banned, and the other one is not.”

The Ireland manager was speaking in the same week that FAI director of football John Martin and chief executive David Courell also carried out media briefings. Both were at pains to point out the need to protect the players during this international window and an example of that became clearer on Friday when it emerged that the usual interview commitments at the start of the week had been shelved.

As has been the case throughout Hallgrímsson’s tenure, a member of his coaching staff, usually John O’Shea, would sit alongside one player at a press conference before two or three more players came in either in pairs or separately.

This week, however, it will only be the mandated Uefa pre-match press conference on Wednesday, the day before Ireland face Kosovo in Priština.

The FAI CEO also explained a number of protocol changes for the 4 October meeting behind closed doors in Serbia, recognised as Ireland’s home game after it was moved from Dublin, which involves displaying “Respect messaging” around the perimeter instead of the usual advertising.

Sponsors will also not be visible in any official backdrops and, as revealed by The 42 last week, RTÉ confirmed on Saturday that it will significantly scale back their own operation with no television studio coverage or any of their own commentators on duty.

Instead, a feed provided by Uefa will be used.

For the usual pre-match gatherings, the FAI have requested not to host their Israeli counterparts, but they will play the anthems in the TSC Arena in Backa Topola while also raising the flag and exchanging match pennants.

On Friday, Courell also revealed that while the FAI hadn’t sought to be kept apart from Israel before the Nations League draw a subsequent request to Uefa to ensure they are separated in future had been turned down.

“The response was pretty clear. They (Uefa) have a formal term for it, I can’t remember the formal term, the ‘do not draw’ list or whatever. It’s based, really, on conflicts, direct conflicts, not public sentiment.

“The answer I got was very clear. That would not be possible, because Ireland and Israel have never been in direct conflict That was an answer that I took at face value.”

However, on Saturday evening, Uefa appeared to contradict that assertion with a statement of their own. “Decisions to avoid certain teams being drawn against each other are made taking into consideration several factors, especially conditions between the two countries leading to structural risks for security. Uefa handles every situation very carefully on its own merits and monitors all facts and developments.”