Israel footballer Saied Abu Farchi was sent off for appearing to use the corner flag to simulate shooting a gun during his goal celebration. Israel were beaten 3-1 by Austria in their Uefa Nations League clash on Thursday night, with Farchi briefly drawing his side level in the second half.
Celebration leads to red card
After finding the back of the net, the 20-year-old immediately ran over to the corner of the pitch, removing the corner flag from the ground. Farchi crouched down and took aim, smiling as he made gun-firing gestures.
Farchi had been booked just four minutes before his goal, with the referee producing a second yellow card to leave Israel down to 10 men. Austria took the lead again in the 90th minute through Philipp Mwene, with Sasa Kalajdzic adding a third in stoppage time.
Upcoming fixture and controversy
Israel are set to play Republic of Ireland on Sunday. Earlier this week, the Israel Football Association accused Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson of 'hypocrisy and stupidity' over comments he made regarding the upcoming Nations League fixtures between the two countries.
Campaigners have stepped up their bid to convince the Ireland team to boycott Sunday's opener in Hungary, with a group gathering outside the team's hotel in Dublin on Monday evening. At last week's squad announcement, Hallgrimsson admitted many squad members were uncomfortable about playing Israel, adding: 'We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide.'
In a furious response on social media on Monday night, the Israel FA wrote: 'We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way. Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by @IrelandFootball team coach. We're not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, we're playing against the coach who embodies them.'
Hallgrimsson later admitted his comments were 'not clever from me. Myself and the players need to be focused on the game. It's a tricky time for us. We are grateful for the support we get.'
