Fickle home crowd could turn on cautious Israeli side

THE last time Tel Aviv got this excited about a football match in its own back yard the Berlin Wall was still thumbing its grubby nose at the west.

The Israeli FA yesterday announced that every last one of the 41,000 tickets available for the Ramat Gan Stadium tomorrow has already been swiped up by a public buoyed by their country’s start to this latest World Cup qualifying campaign.

In fact, the last time tickets were not readily available on the morning of an Israeli home game was back in 1989, when Rene Higuita and Carlos Valderama hit town for a World Cup play-off with Colombia.

With the Jewish festival of Purim kicking off yesterday and a massive beach party organised for the visiting Irish fans from midday today, the city is likely to have hit fever pitch come game time.

However, one local journalist explained that the Israeli crowd is notoriously fickle and that should the home side struggle from the kick-off, their fervent supporters could soon become their most ardent critics.

Coach Avraham Grant certainly wasn’t in party mode yesterday at the team’s base in Herzliya, 10km north of downtown Tel Aviv. Instead, the manager was busy keeping the lid on expectation firmly shut.

“It doesn’t matter about the atmosphere, it’s what we do. Some people get carried away in Israel. It’s a nation that runs between tragedy and a festival of euphoria. One of my jobs is to keep everyone with their feet on the ground and use my common sense to balance things out.”

Israel are understandably playing up the underdogs role for the visits of Ireland and France over the next week, Grant pointing to Ireland’s enviable defensive record, even adding: “We know our place.”

Smokescreens and niceties aside though, Israel’s ambitions for the next five days genuinely don’t seem to stretch any further than two points.

“They have players who are the best in their positions in their leagues,” said captain Avi Nimni.

“We will also try to concentrate on our game and do things we are good at. I hope when we come to play France we will still be in the same position as we are now (at the top of the group). We won’t be disappointed if it ends in a draw.”

Getting inside Grant’s mind this week hasn’t proven easy. Asked to compare and contrast Ireland and France he states merely that both are top class sides. Nimni proffers his opinion more readily.

“I think, in this moment, the Irish team is better than France. They are very good in attack with Damian Duff, Robbie Keane and Morrison up front.

"Their spirit is very dangerous to us. Because Zidane is not playing for France they have something of a problem and Thierry Henry is carrying an injury as well at this time. That makes them a little less good than Ireland.”

Even though six of their eight points to date have been stockpiled from games against Cyprus, Israel have shown their mettle with two draws against France (in Paris) and Switzerland, but it is the final few furlongs that have seen them lose pace in the race for major finals in the past.

The most traumatic came in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers when, needing a win from their last game at home to Austria to proceed to the play-offs, they conceded a last-gasp equaliser. Two years earlier, they were outclassed by the Danes 8-0 on aggregate in the play-off for Euro 2000.

Nimni acknowledges the past but is no slave to it. He claims this is a better team. He said: “This isn’t a game against Austria, it isn’t even the last game of the group. The most important thing is to get a result. When we arrived in France everyone thought we would get turned over, we didn’t.

“We played a really good defensive game and we got what we wanted. We also got an historic victory in Cyprus which no-one predicted we would ever do. We will have to wait and see how we do in this next game. We need to prevent the Irish from dominating the game.”

According to the local sports press, Israel will also have to prevent Ireland from getting too close to their keeper Dudu Aouate. A recognised shot stopper, the Racing Santander custodian is reputed to be less enamoured with crosses than your average vampire.

“I don’t have to say anything about Dudu. He plays for Santander in Spain and he does a really good job,” growled Grant. “I have two excellent keepers in the squad and a few more eager to get involved. I’m not interested in what people say, it’s about what my players do.”