Media: Ireland goalkeeper Bazunu will not play against Israel — Jerusalem Post

In Hungary, ahead of the match between the Israel and Ireland national teams, Ireland’s second-choice goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu said he would not play on Sunday. As the Jerusalem Post reports, citing the Irish Independent, the Ireland national team also announced the postponement of its final training session before the game.

Training session and press conference

The press conference that was due to take place before the training session was also postponed indefinitely. It was initially reported that communication with the media could take place after the session.

According to additional reports, at least five players refused to play against Israel. The team expressed discomfort over a non-football-related dispute, which mainly concerns criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza and has unfolded over the past several weeks.

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Attempts to resolve differences

The Irish staff tried to resolve the differences during a team meeting before departing for Hungary, but no agreement was reached. According to the publication, the Football Association of Ireland risks receiving additional fines from UEFA if it decides to cancel the final pre-match training session and press conference.

The start of the dispute between the teams is linked to comments made by Ireland head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson last weekend: he said that his team is not playing genocide, but playing against it. In response, the Israel Football Association said it was playing against a coach who, in its view, embodies “ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity.” Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin called the Israeli side’s statements unacceptable and supported the coach.