Israel stuns Belgium with late victory to end tough Nations League campaign

Israel pulled off a stunning 1-0 victory over Belgium in their final Nations League match, with an 86th-minute strike from Yarden Shua giving them an unexpected win.

However, despite the triumph, Israel’s overall performance in the competition left them at the bottom of Group A2, with European giants France and Italy comfortably ahead, and Belgium finishing in third place despite this shock defeat.

In a match played under foggy skies, Israel returned to Budapest, which has served as the neutral ground for Israel’s “home” Nations League fixtures this season owing to the conflict in the Middle East

Despite the challenges of playing on foreign soil, the Israeli team delivered a moment of brilliance against Belgium when Shua scored late in the match to defeat their higher-ranked opponents.

Despite the win, Israel’s poor results in previous matches ensured that their bottom-of-the-table finish..

With Italy and France both posting dominant performances in the Nations League, Israel’s win over Belgium did not affect their overall standing, leaving them with just one victory from six games.

They did achieve a creditable 0-0 draw with group winners France in Paris last week in a match that was overshadowed by Pro-Palestinian protests and tensions that had followed the violence surrounding the Maccabi Tel Aviv-Ajax in Amsterdam the previous week.

Inside the stadium, the atmosphere felt less hostile as fewer than 20,000 fans attended the games in the 80,000 Stade de France, with a heavy security presence that included 4,000 officers and an additional 1,500 security personal.