Peres: Kicking for peace
Photo: AP
Peace Game: Only winners
Spanish all-stars beat Israeli/Palestinian Peace Team 3-1 in annual Peace Game in Seville, Spain
Despite the official score on the scoreboard, the annual "Peace Game" was a game where everyone came out on top. This time the Israeli/Palestinian "Peace Team" lost to a team of Spanish all-stars 3-1 in a festive occasion which took place in the city of Seville in southern Spain Wednesday evening.
Peace Team before kickoff (Photo: Nir Keydar)
The event was organized by the Peres Center for Peace and was intended to be a display of coexistence and peace. Vice Premier Shimon Peres took part in the ceremonial kick off alongside Jibril Rajoub, top advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and French soccer great Michel Platini
The game pinned a joint Israeli-Palestinian squad headed by top players from the Israeli premier league and national team as well as in several teams in Europe. The Palestinians were also represented in the squad by a group of top players from various teams in the West Bank and Gaza. The Spanish squad was a mix of all-stars who were born in the Andalusia region in Spain and play in various top teams in their premier league.
The Spanish squad opened strong and went on the offensive from the start as the Spaniards took the lead with a quick pair of goals in the sixth and 23rd minutes scored by Gisa. Klemi Saban of the Peace Team scored their only goal in the 44th minute. Alfaro scored the Spaniards' third goal in the 67th minute and set the final score of 3-1.
