Former British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan was once asked to identify the greatest challenge for any statesman. ‘Events, dear boy, events,’ he replied.
The ink was barely dry on Liel Abada’s new contract at Celtic when events in Israel changed everything.
Five weeks after the winger signed a new four-year deal, his homeland came under attack from Hamas, the violent fall-out raising questions over his ability to remain a player at the Parkhead club.
On October 7, Hamas and other militant groups based in Gaza launched a cross border attack on Israel which killed some 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials.
Israel responded by launching a military campaign to eradicate Hamas, with the BBC reporting more than 20,000 deaths in Gaza, many of them women and children. Israel’s own military estimates suggest several thousand Hamas fighters have been killed.
Fall-out from Hamas attacks has raised questions over the future of Celtic winger Liel Abada
Before a 3-1 win over Kilmarnock, Celtic’s Green Brigade ultras group held aloft a banner calling for ‘victory to the resistance’ in Palestine.
On a day when Hamas had just staged a massacre of innocents at a music festival and taken hostages, the banner provoked anger in Israel and among the Jewish community at large.
In a country which neither knows nor cares about perceived parallels between the history of Celtic and the displacement of Palestinians, it was viewed as a group of football supporters celebrating the slaughter of Jews and an act of anti-Semitism.
Weeks after penning a new contract with the Scottish champions, Abada was placed in an unenviable position. The pressure from home became as strong as the currents of the Red Sea.
Former Celtic midfielder Nir Bitton branded the Green Brigade ‘brainwashed and biased’ and accused them of supporting a terrorist organisation.
Israel international Dolev Haziza, a player with Maccabi Haifa, urged his compatriot to leave Celtic with immediate effect, saying: ‘Liel Abada…you should have moved on from Celtic a long time ago. Go to another club immediately. God will bless you even more if you leave.’
Israel manager Alon Hazan described Celtic supporters as ‘anti-Semitic’, forcing the club to respond on behalf of the vast majority of fans who simply want to watch their team win games of football.
Idan Vered, a winger with the national team, played overseas for Red Star Belgrade before returning to Israel where he now plays with Hapoel Petah Tikva.
‘When you’re an Israeli abroad, you connect even more to your roots and Judaism, even more so now during the war,’ said Vered.
Celtic fans defied a ban from their club to display Palestine flags at Champions League tie
‘Everyone does amazing advocacy, whether it’s Manor Solomon, Liel Abada or Daniel Peretz.
‘In Liel’s case, it’s something even bigger because a lot of the Celtic fans came out against it and it’s a stupid crowd that behaves ignorantly. He’s a big boy and he’s doing amazingly there.’
After October 7, Abada met with Parkhead directors, who promised to take the matter seriously.
Brendan Rodgers took him out for dinner and offered assurances that he was an important and valued player at the club. Celtic also issued a statement distancing themselves from the banner and warning that political messages were unwelcome inside the stadium.
To the near 300 members of the Green Brigade, the club’s stance triggered accusations of double standards.
Celtic players had taken the knee to support Black Lives Matter and expressed gestures of support for the people of Ukraine when Vladimir Putin’s tanks crossed the border from Russia.
While backing for the Green Brigade from the broader body of the Celtic support was by no means universal – the ultras group remain deeply divisive – the Champions League match with Atletico Madrid on October 25 was preceded by a display of Palestinian flags by fans at Parkhead.
When UEFA reacted – as they so often do – by opening another disciplinary case against the Scottish champions, Celtic excluded the fan group from home and away games citing ‘repeated incidents of unacceptable conduct’. The ban, they insisted, was not connected to the flying of Palestinian flags and banners.
As well as a choreographed display, fans raised individual flags against the wishes of their club
Instead, they pointed to a series of ‘safety-related’ incidents involving the Green Brigade September and October while referring ‘to evidence of the group using banners and flags relating to or connected with terrorist organisations involved in the conflict in the Middle East’.
The suspension of the ultras drew praise for Abada from Israel legend and former international team-mate Eran Zahavi.
‘I think the national team players abroad are doing an excellent job,’ said the former PSV goalscorer.
‘In the case of Liel Abada, you see that his club revoked season tickets to people who supported Hamas.’
By the time the winger made his long-awaited return from injury as a substitute in the recent 2-1 win over Rangers, the Green Brigade were off the naughty step and had been allowed to attend games again. Trepidation was natural.
Fears of a mixed reaction from fans on Abada’s comeback proved unfounded. His arrival as a replacement for Luis Palma in the 83rd minute provoked one of the loudest ovations of the match.
However, the response from back in his homeland continues to be robust.
Since October, the 22-year-old has come under sustained pressure to think carefully about his future from both football figures and those on social media.
On Instagram, Abada was tagged in a post depicting an Israeli supporter burning a Celtic shirt. Under a Hebrew caption, one line in English read: ‘For all you Celtic fans.’ Another branded him a ‘traitor to (his) country’ while a separate message read: ‘Shame on you for still being there.’
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Abada has found the situation difficult and testing. A substitute in the 3-0 win over St Mirren in Paisley, the player left the field as team-mates soaked up the acclaim of the away supporters. Every move now has to be carefully calibrated.
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers assured Abada that he was an important and valued player
Speaking last week, Brendan Rodgers claimed the wide man – who wore a black armband against Rangers and St Mirren – was in a ‘good place’. Back fit, Celtic see him as a key player in the defence of their league title. A valuable asset they would rather hang on to, pressure from within Israel is putting that stance to the test.
When Abada signed a new contract on September 1, the Parkhead manager spoke of ‘significant interest’ in his services and Mail Sport now understands there were five clubs potentially keen on signing the Israel international.
Rodgers has gone the extra mile to extend help and support to a young man conflicted by devastating events affecting the lives of close friends and family 3,500 miles away. The one thing he can’t do is ease the psychological pressure being applied by those who want him to leave Celtic and play his football elsewhere.
Despite a four month lay-off, the final weeks of the January window may yet test the strength of interest in Abada as the scrutiny from his homeland begins to take its toll.
