Spitting allegation follows second Republic of Ireland match against Israel

A number of controversial incidents were alleged to have took place during the Republic of Ireland's second match against Israel in Bačka Topola, Serbia, on Sunday.

Ireland's fitness coach Damien Doyle alleges he was spat at by an Israeli player as teams left the pitch at half time.

The alleged incident caused both teams to come to blows, referee Juan Martínez Munuera advised them to "be clever."

Midfielder Jayson Molumby also was on the receiving end of several late fouls. Israeli player Oscar Gloukh allegedly went up to the Waterford native at full time, in an attempt to provoke him.

However Molumby did not engage with Gloukh as he left the field. Members of Israel's backrooms team allegedly stopped Gloukh from engaging with him further, and escorted him away.

During the pre-match press conference on Saturday, an Israeli journalist begun questioning Ireland manager Heimir Halgrimsson about the alleged flydubai terrorist attack, which Irish communications officer Kieran Crowley promptly shut down:

"We're not doing any questions like this today, no. We're doing football questions."

A second Israeli journalist accused the Irish team of using racially abusive language towards Israeli players. Crowley denied these claims, saying:

"That is completely untrue... That's a lie. You've just broadcast a lie."

He then ended the press conference.

Both journalists were banned from the post-match conferences for both managers on Sunday, this motion is understood to have come directly from UEFA.

FIFA also confirmed on Saturday that their own investigation into the alleged racist abuse of Irish player Adam Idah by Israeli fans during the first match is ongoing.

The FAI said they will examine all the available evidence from their own cameras that were pitch side during the match on September 27. They will ensure UEFA will investigate the incident, if they deem Ireland to have a suitable case.

UEFA did not open an investigation into the allegations due to the fact that correct protocols were not followed in reporting the alleged racist incident during the match.

Ireland and Israel drew 1-1 in the match. The Irish players wore black armbands during the match, in recognition of the Palestinian people killed during Israel's war on Gaza. Israeli players wore black armbands in recognition of the people killed in the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.

Ireland also refused to shake hands with the Israeli team, and bowed their heads during Israel's national anthem.

Following the match in Serbia, Hallgrimsson expressed his view that Ireland and Israel should not play against each other in the future

"I wouldn't wish for any national team to go through what we have gone through these two weeks. So maybe UEFA just needs to step in and do something."