Italy players ‘cursed at us the whole game’ Israel footballers say | OneFootball

Israeli players accuse Italian national team footballers of ‘teasing’ and insulting them for the whole game, leading to a quarrel after the final whistle.

Italian and Israeli players were involved in an argument on the pitch last night after the Azzurri’s 5-4 win in a 2026 World Cup qualifying match.

Israeli players blame Azzurri after 5-4 loss

Matteo Politano celebrates scoring for Italy against Israel (@azzurri)

Some Israeli players explained the incident to the local media.

“An argument broke out, they were very, very emotional,” Eli Dasa told Sport5.

“They felt they were not in the game, and we deserved to win, and they tried to provoke a bit. It is part of football, so we moved on.”

The Israeli media spoke to other members of their national team, who added further details on the incident.

Italy staff members reportedly apologised to Israel

Italy squad celebrate against Israel (@Azzurri)

They said it initially involved Gianluigi Donnarumma, Tay Brivo, and Shagiv Yehezkel, and it started after the goalkeeper teased the team players, although it wasn’t just him. “They cursed at us the whole game,” the players said.

According to the report, several members of the Italian delegation apologised to the team at the end for the behaviour of some of the players.

Italy have not made any official comment regarding the incident.