Israel face spitting allegation as Ireland boss ‘delighted’ after ties over

Ireland manager says ‘disciplinary committee will look at’ allegations that Israeli player spat at one of his coaching staff.Tempers flared ‌again as Ireland and Israel drew 1-1 on Sunday in the second of their two UEFA Nations ⁠League meetings, concluding a fortnight ⁠dominated as much by political tensions as football.Ireland had faced calls from some supporters and politicians to boycott the fixtures before beating Israel 3-0 behind closed doors in Hungary in their first meeting ⁠a week ago.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘Everyone knew’: Canada boss Marsch wants Man City relegated for breacheslist 2 of 4Cristiano Ronaldo can return to Portugal team if he wants, says Jesuslist 3 of 4Amid teen triumph and organisational chaos, Asian Games close in Japanlist 4 of 4FC Barcelona accused of corruption in Negreira case: All you need to knowend of list“I’m absolutely delighted this is finished,” Ireland’s Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrimsson told reporters.“It’s taken a toll out of us all. I’ve given so much credit to the players. They have been absolutely amazing in tough times, and I ⁠wish no national team to go through what we have gone through for the last two weeks.”Ireland is one of Europe’s most outspoken critics of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, and the Ireland" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="123590" data-entity-type="organization">Football Association of Ireland chose to stage Sunday’s match behind closed doors in Serbia amid the pressure to withdraw from the fixtures.The absence of supporters, however, did little to ease the tension on ‌the pitch.Irish media reported that one of Ireland’s coaches, Damien Doyle, had accused an Israeli player of spitting at him after the half-time whistle.Asked about the spitting incident at the post-match news conference, Hallgrimsson declined to provide details.“I was there. I’m not going to comment. It’s something a disciplinary committee will look at,” he told reporters.Israel coach Ran Ben-Shimon said he had already left the sideline and did not see what happened.“Halftime, I was in the dressing room, in my room with my ⁠staff; I didn’t see anything. When I’m going to see and check, I will get ⁠back to you with the answer,” he told reporters.Tense Ireland-Israel atmosphere again in Nations LeagueAs in the first meeting, there were no pre-match handshakes or exchange of pennants, while players from each team bowed their heads during the opposing national anthem.