Ireland and Israel’s fortnight of fury ends on a bizarre stage in rural Serbia

Ireland v Israel was drenched in rancour from the moment the draw was made, and across months it filtered down from fan groups to football associations to coaches and press officers and, finally, to the players. And so the final act in this bleak and acrimonious series was to keep both sides separated as they left the field in Backa Topola. In the end, all these teams could share was a draw.

The Irish players responded much better to the intense pressure in Debrecen last week, but the Israeli media were in no mood to lessen their players’ load for this rematch. The Israeli coach was asked on Saturday why his team had “choked” with the nation’s honour on the line, and the same journalist wrote on Sunday of the need to avenge last week’s “humiliating” defeat. And, of course, everything was cast in a wider context.