REPUBLIC OF IRELAND boss Heimir Hallgrimsson has challenged his players to focus on beating Israel amid the ongoing controversy over their forthcoming Nations League fixtures.

The Icelander has insisted he, his staff and his team can only deal with the football aspects of their games against the Israelis at a neutral venue on September 27 and in Dublin on October 4.

However, there were protests at the Dail – the Irish parliament – yesterday over the matter and Hallgrimsson and his players have found themselves embroiled in the debate.

Asked about the situation, the 58-year-old, who in October called for Israel to be banned from all competitions because of military action in Gaza, said: “Focusing on the football side of things, I’ve already expressed my opinion on this matter, you don’t need to repeat that one.

“But from a footballing perspective – it’s an obstacle I don’t like, and it’s unfair for the players to be in this position and us to be in this position – but from a footballing perspective, I don’t like us to be the bad guys. We are not the bad guys here.

“We just want to perform, we want to play, and the players would like to perform for the country and do well.

“I think the best answer for us is just to win this game. That would be a perfect answer from my end.

“Other decisions are not made by us, but all the players would like to represent the country and do well for them, no matter who is the opponent.”

Israel played their World Cup qualifiers in Hungary and will continued to use neutral venues for the Nations League.

The furore surrounding their involvement means the atmosphere around the meeting at Dublin Arena will be tense, and there have been suggestions that it too could be played elsewhere with the FA of Ireland having indicated they will honour the two fixtures.

However, Hallgrimsson said: “It would obviously be a disadvantage from footballing reasons not to play at home. We’ve done really well at home. Hopefully, we’ll continue that tomorrow against Qatar.”

Ireland will face Qatar in a friendly this evening before travelling to Canada for another warm-up fixture on June 6.