AMID the backdrop of political tensions and beliefs, Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv travelled to Villa Park on Thursday evening for a Europa league tie that found itself being discussed in the Houses of Parliament due to its political sensitivity, fuelled by the decision to prevent the away fans from attending the game.

As it turned out, they didn’t miss much on the pitch as their side fell to a 2-0 defeat courtesy of goals from Dutch duo Ian Maatsen and Donyell Malen.

The build-up to the game was heavily dominated by the decision made by Birmingham City Council’s Safety Advisory Group (SAG) to not allow Maccabi fans to attend the game because of their record of violence at previous matches following West Midlands Police’s high-risk assessment of the fixture, a decision Prime Minister Keir Starmer disagreed with, calling it “‘the wrong decision.”

Directly outside of the Trinity Road Stand entrance prior to the match, pro-Palestinian protesters made speeches calling for an end to the violence in Gaza and for the banning of Israeli clubs from all Uefa competitions, citing Russia’s exclusion as an example following the invasion of Ukraine.

“The reason that we are out here is to show solidarity with the innocent victims of Gaza, especially the women and children. It’s been going on for too long. So we are here to stand with Palestine and our local community,” stated Khan, a local resident from the Aston area attending the protests. 

He continued “You banned Russia from every sport, so why is it that Israeli teams are not banned? It’s hypocritical.”

Dave who travelled down from Manchester for the match admitted to feeling a little bit strange due to the narrative surrounding the game.

“I am a little bit on edge for the match tonight. I think it will be a funny atmosphere with a lot of police and protests about. I haven’t brought my daughter down with me as I usually would have done. I feel a bit flat to be honest,” stated the Villa fan.

As for the match itself, the atmosphere inside the stadium was eerily subdued for a hub usually revered for its raucous energy and support from the home fans. 

The absence of any fans in the away end coupled with visible gaps of empty seats in the home sections, with many Villa supporters choosing to stay away, meant the mood in the stadium was more akin to an early pre-season friendly with the familiar early match chants replaced by barely audible murmurings in the crowd.

The game itself turned out to be a fairly routine win for the Villains, with a stunning first half goal goal from Maatsen, firing in off the underside of the crossbar from an acute angle and a second half penalty from Donyell Malen after Ezra Konsa was tripped in the box by Maccabi striker Elad Madmon.

Following the match, Maccabi boss Zarko Lazetic was reluctant to comment on the fact his club’s supporters were not allowed in the stadium.

“I can’t say anything about our supporters not being there as it has nothing to do with the football. Our preparation was also not normal as we had to get here 5 hours before the match.”

When asked whether the early arrival at the stadium would be the protocol for the remainder of Maccabi’s away matches, the Serbian manager replied bluntly: “No, only here.”

Villa boss Unai Emery was pleased with his team’s victory, but refused to be drawn on the protests outside Villa Park stating: “I don’t know about politics, I only know football.”

More than 700 police officers were deployed amid a huge security operation, which involved police horses, police dogs and a drone unit ahead of the protests.

Eleven arrests were made in the area, five of which were on suspicion of racially aggravated offences. The others included failure to comply with orders and breaching the peace.

There were some unsavoury scenes as Villa fans chanted Tommy Robinson’s name as they walked past the pro-Palestine protest, with police quickly intervening.