The Israel National Team will face Austria tomorrow (Thursday) in its opening match of the 2026-27 Nations League. This will be the first of four games that the blue-and-white will play in less than two weeks with a pari of clashes against Ireland as well as one match versus Kosovo on tap.<\/p>\n
Israel Head Coach Ran Ben Shimon and national team star Manor Solomon of West Ham United spoke at the pre-match press conference, discussing preparations, the state of the team and expectations ahead of the campaign.<\/p>\n
On his feelings ahead of the national team’s matches, Ben Shimon said, \u201cBefore every game and every camp, I get excited. I\u2019m excited to be with these guys every time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Regarding the absences in defense the bench boss added, \u201cThere won\u2019t be any absences in defense; good players will step up. I\u2019m trying to focus on the players who are here. Up until we arrived, we did everything possible to bring the best players. When injuries happen, which is part of the game, there are other outstanding defenders. We have experienced players who know how to deal with everything. I trust them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ben Shimon also addressed the late arrival of players from the United States who are playing in the MLS, \u201cIt\u2019s unusual for the players from the USA to have arrived only now, but it\u2019s not in our hands. Yom Kippur is a very important day for Jews and there\u2019s nothing we can do. I hope we\u2019ll overcome it this.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the Austrian opponent Ben Shimon commented, \u201cAustria has excellent players, and we\u2019ve prepared for them. We\u2019re emphasizing team preparation rather than focusing on individual players. All of our preparation has been based on the strengths and weaknesses that we can exploit against the Austrians. Both national teams have strengths, not just the Austrians. They\u2019re an attacking team that presses, but we also have intelligent and experienced players who know how to perform under pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n
The blue-and-white tactician also talked about the journey his team is on, \u201cWe\u2019re moving forward in the present and toward the future, not looking at the past. We\u2019ve come a long way and made progress so that we know how to deal with the pressure and the level of competition. I want to see an efficient and intelligent team that understands the game and finds solutions. Above all, I want to see a brave team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manor Solomon also shared his thoughts about Austria and about how Israel has been developing, \u201cAustria is missing a few players, but they still have plenty of excellent players. We believe in ourselves and hope to win the game. I\u2019m here to win. I\u2019m a footballer and I\u2019m focused only on the game, not politics. We\u2019ve built something strong over the past few years. We\u2019re improving from game to game and want to continue that progress. We really want to get the campaign off to a good start.\u201d<\/p>\n
Regarding his own personal start to the season in the Championship, Solomon said, \u201cI\u2019ve had an excellent start to the season. I feel good physically and want to give everything to the national team. The staff is preparing us wonderfully for this game and I truly believe in us. We have a lot of good players who are in good form. We\u2019re capable of doing amazing things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Solomon also discussed how the national team has changed since Ben Shimon took charge, \u201cSince Ran and the staff arrived, we\u2019ve been becoming more of a team rather than just a national side. We know what we need to do with and without the ball, even in difficult moments. We haven\u2019t achieved great things in recent years, but we believe it\u2019s possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
The star also spoke about his connection with Oscar Gloukh, \u201cOscar and I have been playing together for the national team for years. With every call-up, our connection gets stronger and better. We\u2019ve become friends off the pitch, and that shows on the field. We\u2019re capable of being good both offensively and defensively.\u201d<\/p>\n
Israel Football Association Chairman Shino Zuaretz gathered the players together to share some of his thoughts about the upcoming Nations League campaign, \u201cThis is the mission of our lives, the mission of my life. We\u2019ve all been focused on this moment, the Euro 2028 campaign. This is my goal, and I want you to understand how much we\u2019re doing to reach the Euros. It\u2019s all in your hands.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a winning staff here and a group of winners. If you want to write your names in the history books, remember what people remember about those who were in Mexico in 1970. They\u2019ll remember you for this your entire lives. You can make this history. I want your passion, but get it into your heads that this is the mission of your lives. Give everything you can. Whether you play one minute or 20, give it your all so that we can be the first [Israeli team] to reach the Euros.\u201d<\/p>\n
The expected starting lineup: Daniel Peretz, Guy Mizrahi, Idan Nachmias, Nikita Stoyanov, Roy Revivo, Eliel Peretz, Dor Peretz, Oscar Gloukh, Manor Solomon, Anan Khalaili, Sayed Abu Farchi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Israel National Team will face Austria tomorrow (Thursday) in its opening match of the 2026-27 Nations League. This will be the first of four games that the blue-and-white will play in less than two weeks with a pari of clashes against Ireland as well as one match versus Kosovo on tap. Israel Head Coach […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":52713,"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":[29,44],"class_list":["post-191343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football-israel-2","tag-israel","tag-manor-solomon","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n