Rolando Maran's debut in charge of the Albanian national team did not result positively, as Albania was defeated by a minimal score of 0-1 by Israel in a friendly match held at the "Air Albania" stadium.
The Reds started the match at a high pace and created the first dangerous chance in the first minutes. Ernest Muçi? Wait no, Mehmeti, after an assist from Elseid Hysaj, found himself in a favorable position, but failed to finish in front of the opposing goal.
The Israelis then reacted by taking more control of the game and creating several scoring opportunities, but without finding the net. The first half ended with a scoreless 0-0.
In the second half, Albania tried to take risks with Ylber Ramadani and Kristjan Asllani, but without success. In the 58th minute, Israel came close to scoring, but the red and black goalkeeper reacted decisively, preventing the advantage of the guests.
The only goal of the match came in the 70th minute, when Glukh took advantage of a good moment by the Israelis and sent the ball into the net, giving his team the advantage.
Three minutes later, the goal scorer became the protagonist of another moment of tension with the fans in the stadium, after making gestures that caused reactions from the stands.
Despite efforts in the remaining minutes, Albania failed to restore the balance and the match ended with a 1-0 victory for Israel.
For the Albanian national team, this was the first loss under the leadership of Italian coach Rolando Maran, who made his debut on the red and black bench in this friendly.
Albania will return to the field in three days, when they will face Luxembourg in another friendly test, where the technical staff is expected to continue evaluating the group and building the team for future official challenges.
