Ireland Players Vote to Play Israel in Nations League Match After Bazunu Withdraws
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Ireland's squad voted on Saturday to go ahead with Sunday's UEFA Nations League match against Israel in Debrecen, Hungary, after one player, backup goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, withdrew from the squad, Football Association of Ireland chief executive David Courell said. Courell said a "significant majority" voted to continue after four more hours of talks with coaches and executives. The players will wear black armbands in memory of victims of the conflict, skip certain pre-match ceremonial elements, make donations to charitable causes and skip media duties for the rest of the international window. Manager Heimir Hallgrímsson said his earlier use of the word "genocide" about Israel was "the wrong word for me to use."