After a four-month break, Israel will continue its quest for the UEFA EURO 2024 tournament as they will face Iceland in a single-leg knockout match on Thursday. Israel got placed in the PATH B semifinal group along with Iceland, Ukraine, and Bosnia and Herzegovina due to finishing in third place in Group I. The winner of Israel vs. Iceland will face the winner of Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina on March 26.
Thursday’s matchup will be at Szusza Ferenc Stadion in Budapest, Hungary. The contest is considered a “home game” for Israel, but moved due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
Israel has a chance to make history. The Israel national soccer team has never qualified for a European championship since being a member of UEFA in 1994. Alon Hazan’s team heads into the semifinals ranked 75th in the world, two spots below Iceland at No. 73.
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After 10 matches in the qualification round, Israel finished third in its group behind Romania and Switzerland. The Israel national soccer team ended group play with four wins, three draws, and three losses. Hazan’s team started the competition with a 1-1 draw against Kosovo and a 3-0 loss to Switzerland. Israel rebounded with victories over Belarus and Romania before drawing with Romania in its fifth matchup. Maccabi Tel-Aviv midfielder Gavriel Kanichowsky scored the game-winning goal to lift Israel past Belarus 1-0 in their second matchup in September.
It was a challenging finish to group play for Israel. In their first game since the conflict began, Israel’s national soccer team fell to Kosovo 1-0 after allowing a goal from midfielder Milot Rashica in the 43rd minute. U.S. Salernitana 1919 forward Shon Weissman scored a late goal in the 88th minute to secure a 1-1 draw with Switzerland in its eighth game of the qualifying round. Hazan’s team conceded two goals in the second half of their 2-1 loss to Romania before finishing the qualification round with a 2-0 victory over Andorra.
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Weismann and FC Red Bull Salzburg midfielder Oscar Gloukh have been the leading goal scorers for Israel throughout the EURO 2024 qualifying tournament, with two each. Both players scored in the final five minutes in Israel’s 2-1 win over Belarus in June. Gloukh also scored in the second half of Israel’s 1-1 draw with Romania in September. Other goal scorers for Israel in the tournament are Maccabi Tel-Aviv midfielder Dor Peretz, Tottenham midfielder Manor Solomon, Maccabi Haifa F.C. midfielder Gadi Kinda, Maccabi Tel-Aviv forward Eran Zahavi, and defender Raz Shlomo.
FC Dynamo Moscow right-back Eli Dasa, the captain of the Israel national team, is another player to watch. Omri Glazer, goalkeeper for Israel, also plays for FK Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade) in Serbia. Iceland heads into Thursday’s matchup after a challenging stretch in group play. They aim to qualify for its first Euro tournament since 2016. Iceland’s national soccer team finished fourth in Group J with three wins, a draw, and six losses. Age Hareide’s team concluded the qualification round behind Portugal, Slovakia, and Luxembourg.
Israel faces a tough task against Iceland’s talent. K.A.S. Eupen striker Alfred Finnbogason will be a challenging matchup. Finnbogason, with several accomplishments in his career, was named MVP of the Eredivisie league in 2014 and won the Super League in Greece with Olympiacos Piraeus in 2016. The 35-year-old striker has three goals in the Euro 2024 Qualifiers so far. LOSC Lille midfielder Hakon Arnor Haraladsson also scored three goals in group play, including goals in Iceland’s victories over Liechtenstein and one in its 3-1 loss to Luxembourg in September.
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Aron Gunnarson, Iceland’s team captain, also has three goals, all coming in Iceland’s 7-0 win over Liechtenstein in September. F.C. Copenhagen midfielder Orri Oskarsson has scored two goals in Iceland’s national soccer team’s 1-1 draw with Luxembourg and in the first half of their 4-2 loss to Slovakia in November. Lyngby Boldklub forward Andri Gudjohnsen has also been effective for Iceland. Israel vs. Iceland will kick off on Thursday at 2:45 p.m. CT.
