Celtic defender Liam Scales reportedly "provided support" for his Republic of Ireland teammate Gavin Bazunu after he refused to play against Israel. Ireland are due to play their Nations League clash in Hungary on Sunday night, with Israel banned by UEFA from hosting games on home soil due to security fears amid the war in Gaza.
Protests and Boycott
There have been strong protests against the fixture in Ireland, with pressure group Irish Sport for Palestine organising a "Stop the Game" campaign amid the UN-defined genocide in Gaza. On Saturday, it became unclear if Ireland would go ahead with the game as goalkeeper Bazunu revealed he would boycott the game - leading to a tense meeting between the players, management and Irish FA representatives.
However, after a delay to training and at the press conference the governing body revealed the game they would go ahead after the team voted in favour of playing with CEO David Courell claiming a "significant majority" wanted to play. The players are now set to wear black armbands in solidarity with the Palestinian people, while the players will also not take part in media duties for the game.
Support Behind the Scenes
According to the 42.ie, Scales was one of three players who showed backing for the Bolton goalkeeper's stance behind the scenes. It's claimed Scales, Jack Moylan and Troy Parrott "provided support and understanding for Bazunu" as "tensions and tempers" rose. It also noted that "others had far stronger words with the Bolton Wanderers man" and "would later take the time to visit him in his room on Saturday night and apologise for their behaviour."
Former Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr claimed on Virgin Media the team had voted 14-8 in favour of playing the game. Kerr claimed to have spoken to Bazunu - and that he felt "shunned" by some of his teammates.
Kerr's Comments
Kerr said: "I think it's a very legitimate decision for him [Bazunu] to take, I think it's a heroic decision. But I have been in touch with him this evening and he is feeling quite low and shunned by some of the players and by the FAI. And it has been suggested to him that it would be better if he left the squad, which I think is disgraceful, because they have a match against Austria to play and why shouldn't he be involved in that game."
He added: "He wasn't, by the way, at the meeting earlier, he wasn't told about the meeting or involved in the meeting this morning. So he wasn't involved in the vote. They presumed they knew his vote, so they didn't bring him into discussions, which sounds amazing to me. Sad."
