Unlike Belgium, Italy faces Israel at home… but with an XXL security system – All football

For security reasons, particularly following the attacks that took place a year ago today during Belgium-Sweden, Belgium-Israel was not held in Brussels. No other major city having given its agreement and taken the risk of hosting the meeting, this first Nations League match was relocated to Debrecen, in Hungary.

But the Red Devils were the only ones not to face Israel “at home”. As we wrote this morning, France is preparing its November match in a tense climate: opposition to Israel is significant, particularly in the French suburbs, and the meeting could be moved from the Stade de France to the easier Parc des Princes. to manage.

This Monday, Italy hosts Israel in a smaller stadium than the Stadio Olimpico: the meeting will be held in Udine, at the Stade du Friuli. And the tension will be at its height, even if Luciano Spalletti wanted to calm things down in his press conference: “There are many Israelis who are against the war, and we are also playing this match to convince everyone that this must stop.”

Thus, at a good distance from the stadium, 2 meter high barriers will be erected in order to make the surrounding areas inaccessible and will allow “pre-checks” to be carried out, reports the Gazzetta dello Sport. Huge concrete bollards will be strategically placed to prevent vehicles from rushing in, “as has unfortunately been the case in the past”, specifies the newspaper.

The infrastructure at the Udine stadium will now only be accessible to Udinese coaches and players, but even they will have to leave the premises a few hours before the match in order to carry out final security checks. Finally, a pro-Palestinian demonstration will be held in the center of Udine, but it should not be able to go to the surroundings of the stadium.