Ireland to face Israel after players vote to play

Republic of Ireland will face Israel in Debrecen on Sunday after the players voted to play the game.

The vote passed by a significant majority, according to the BBC. It settled the immediate question over the UEFA Nations League tie. The Nations League is UEFA's competition for national teams, played in tiers with promotion and relegation.

The decision followed a disrupted morning on Saturday 26 September. Ireland's pre-match press conference, due at 09:15 BST, was postponed 15 minutes before it was due to start. Training scheduled for 10:00 BST did not go ahead as planned while the squad stayed at the team hotel in a meeting.

The press conference was rearranged for 14:30 at the Nagyerdei Stadion, with training to follow. FAI chief executive David Courell confirmed the game would go ahead alongside manager Heimir Hallgrimsson and the FAI director of football.

The meeting came a day after midfielder Jason Knight said he did not believe the match should go ahead. Knight made the comments on 25 September, as reported by RTÉ. His view made the squad vote the centre of the build-up.

On the football side, the Israel game is Ireland's second tie of this window. The campaign began in Pristina against Kosovo before the trip to Hungary, with the FAI listing Israel v Republic of Ireland on 27 September at the Nagyerdei Stadion. Hallgrimsson named a 26-man squad for the fixtures, with Killian Phillips later called up.

Ireland are then due back in Dublin to host Austria at the Aviva Stadium.

For fans picking this up, the football context is simple. Ireland needed clarity before Sunday, and now they have it. The focus shifts to the pitch in Debrecen.