Republic of Ireland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson's pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday's match against Israel in Serbia ended abruptly after a tense exchange with Israeli media. The media access was cut short after an Israeli journalist alleged that Israeli players had claimed they were racially abused by Irish players during their match in Hungary last Sunday. The journalist alleged a derogatory term was used - which Sky Sports has chosen not to repeat. An Irish press officer refuted the allegation, saying that's completely untrue, and brought the news conference to a premature close as one of his colleagues remonstrated with the reporter.
Hallgrimsson later labelled the accusation a verbal attack during a separate briefing for members of the Irish press. The exchange in the main press conference took place after Hallgrimsson was also asked a question about a co-pilot who attacked a pilot and tried to hijack a flight travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv earlier this week. The reporter's question was shut down by the FAI press officer.
Sky Sports News understands there are no open UEFA investigations at this stage from the previous meeting between Israel and Ireland last weekend. The FAI are conducting their own investigation into whether striker Adam Idah was racially abused by Israeli supporters during their 3-0 UEFA Nations League win but have yet to make an official complaint to UEFA. Despite the high-profile nature of the fixture, members of the Irish media later reported that there was no UEFA delegate present at the news conference.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing