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.
