Heimir Hallgrímsson has ended a week of speculation with one sentence. The Republic of Ireland will play their second Nations League fixture against Israel on Sunday, and as far as the head coach is aware, nobody in his squad is meeting to discuss it again.
"It is already decided"
Speaking before Thursday's game against Austria in Dublin, Hallgrímsson was asked whether the second Israel match might go the way of Saturday's chaos. "The FAI has said we are playing both games," he said. "That was our intention when we came into the camp and it is still our intention. We are trying to focus on the football. It is already decided we will fulfil the games."
The first meeting went ahead in Hungary on Sunday and Ireland won 3-0, but getting there was not straightforward. The pre-match news conference was postponed on Saturday because the squad was meeting. When it finally started, more than five hours late, FAI chief executive David Courell said the players had voted to play and that the vote passed by a "significant majority". On the night the players skipped the pre-match formalities, wore black armbands and bowed their heads during Israel's anthem. The second game is behind closed doors in Serbia.
The pressure from outside
Calls for Ireland to withdraw have not stopped. The Stop The Game campaign, run by the pressure group Irish Sport for Palestine, issued an open letter this week urging the squad to pull out of Sunday's fixture because of the Israel-Gaza war. Hallgrímsson was also asked about possible protests during Thursday's Austria match.
He did not take the bait. "I must focus on football. I will let others think about security and those things. We are playing Austria, the highest-ranked team in the group. I'm not going to allow outside noise to affect me focusing on football." Ireland's last home game, a May friendly against Qatar, was interrupted when supporters threw tennis balls carrying the Palestinian flag onto the pitch.
Bazunu, Azaz and a squad holding together
Gavin Bazunu made himself unavailable for both Israel fixtures on Saturday, saying it "would be wrong to participate". He is back training with the group before the Austria match, and Hallgrímsson used part of his press conference to defend him and to hit out at what he called lies reported about the goalkeeper's decision. "Gavin is a great lad. I've always had a good relationship with him and it's probably more tough for him than the other players, but they have really welcomed him. There's been a lot of lies said around all of this, but we welcome him back and he's taken part, amazing." Luton's Josh Keeley takes Bazunu's place in the squad for the second Israel game. Bazunu plays his club football at Bolton.
Hallgrímsson reserved his warmest words for Finn Azaz, the Southampton midfielder who has family links to Israel through his mother and who sat on the bench for the whole of Sunday's win. The coach praised his "incredible emotional control" and said he admired how the 26-year-old had conducted himself more than almost anyone in the camp, though he would not say whether Azaz will be selected on Sunday. "Inside camp he has so much respect within this group of players."
Fixture context: Republic of Ireland beat Israel 3-0 in Hungary on Sunday in the Uefa Nations League. The return fixture is behind closed doors in Serbia this Sunday. Ireland host Austria, the highest-ranked side in the group, in Dublin on Thursday 1 October 2026. Josh Keeley (Luton) replaces Gavin Bazunu (Bolton) in the squad for the second Israel match. Finn Azaz, 26, of Southampton was an unused substitute in the first fixture.
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