Israel defeated Albania 1-0 as Oscar Gloukh scored the lone goal of the match in the second half to record the clean sheet and take the win in a friendly that took place in Tirana. After a goalless first half, the blue-and-white finally broke through when Ajax\u2019s Gloukh made his way into the box off the left side and slotted home a marvelous strike to notch the only goal of the game. <\/p>\n
Following the marker, Gloukh silenced the crowd, pointed to the Israeli emblem on his shirt and kissed it as a response to the booing that took place during the Hatikva national anthem prior to the match. However, Elseid Hysaj, Albania\u2019s full-back took exception to Gloukh\u2019s celebration as both squads got into a shoving match that saw the two principles received yellow cards for their extracurricular activities. <\/p>\n
Next up for Israel will be the Nations League group stage beginning in September with the likes of Austria, Ireland and Kosovo. <\/p>\n
Gal Cohen, the assistant coach who took charge in the absence of Ran Ben Shimon who remained in Israel following an injury, commented on the performance, \u201cThe first half was chaotic and we struggled. We created chances, but we were also exposed defensively. In the second half, with the halftime substitutions, I think the team stabilized. It\u2019s not easy to manage a match with 11 substitutions. I think both the players who came on and the tactical instructions we gave made the difference. I\u2019m happy that, in terms of the result which is what matters most, we also kept a clean sheet. I\u2019m proud of the players.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cohen also commented on Oscar Gloukh\u2019s gesture after his goal, \u201cI understand him, but I also had to take him off at that moment so the situation wouldn\u2019t escalate. I\u2019m happy for Oscar; it was an important goal for him and for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Oscar Gloukh talked about the incident, \u201cI couldn\u2019t just ignore being booed during the national anthem. We didn\u2019t expect that; it was only a friendly match. I was fired up from the start and with the emotions and the goal, that was my reaction in the end. I don\u2019t regret it. I\u2019m very happy. The guys did a tremendous job. It\u2019s a very important win going forward because this is our level, the level we need to aspire to. We played very well, we were at the level and even above it, and we need to keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manor Solomon also spoke after the match, \u201cWe played an excellent match in a hostile atmosphere. It\u2019s another step toward our goal. We\u2019re improving and we\u2019re satisfied. As for the boos during the anthem, we were surprised by it. It was unpleasant, and perhaps the harshest booing we\u2019ve received so far. The Albanians welcomed us warmly, so we didn\u2019t expect it. But as football players, we have to know how to deal with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eliel Peretz added, On the boos, Peretz added, \u201cThroughout the three years of the war, I\u2019ve become used to boos, whether in Europe or elsewhere. It\u2019s unpleasant and disrespectful. But in the end, we\u2019re professionals. It gives us motivation to come out and win. It\u2019s a bit humiliating and hurtful, but as a team we know how to respond properly and the best way to prove ourselves is on the pitch. You saw in Oscar\u2019s goal that all the emotion came pouring out. It gives us motivation. We always want to win, and it puts extra fire in our eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Israel defeated Albania 1-0 as Oscar Gloukh scored the lone goal of the match in the second half to record the clean sheet and take the win in a friendly that took place in Tirana. After a goalless first half, the blue-and-white finally broke through when Ajax\u2019s Gloukh made his way into the box off […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":180757,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[29],"class_list":["post-180755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football-israel-2","tag-israel","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n