Israel striker Abu Farchi sent off for gun celebration as Austria win 3-1 in Nations League

Israel forward Saied Abu Farchi was sent off during a 3-1 Nations League defeat to Austria in Linz on Thursday after celebrating his equalising goal by grabbing the corner flag and making a gun-firing gesture — a moment that left his side with 10 men for the closing stages.

Abu Farchi had headed home in the 55th minute to draw Israel level following a Romano Schmid penalty that had given Austria the lead before half-time at the Raiffeisen Arena. The 20-year-old had already been booked four minutes before his goal, and the referee had no hesitation in showing a second yellow card for the celebration, followed by a red.

Austria capitalised on the numerical advantage late on. Phillipp Mwene restored the lead in the 90th minute after connecting with a cross from Paul Wanner, and Sasa Kalajdzic added a third in stoppage time with a close-range finish to seal the result.

The defeat comes as Israel prepare to face the Republic of Ireland on Sunday in a double-header being played at neutral venues in Hungary and Serbia due to safety concerns — a fixture that has already generated significant controversy.

Ireland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson sparked a fierce response from the Israeli Football Association after saying his team would be “playing against genocide” in the upcoming games. Hallgrimsson acknowledged the difficulty of the situation, saying: “None of us feel comfortable playing in these games,” and later clarified his original remark: “We’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide. We’re playing against Israel, we’re not playing with Israel.”

The Israeli FA hit back sharply on social media, writing: “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 the Ireland team coach.”

Irish taoiseach Michael Martin described the Israeli FA’s comments as “unacceptable” and said they “should be withdrawn”, making the remarks while attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The Football Association of Ireland confirmed it will fulfil both fixtures despite calls from campaigners to boycott the games.