It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I watch every Hapoel Haifa game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Maccabi Netanya runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Hapoel Haifa, and 3 appearances in 9 say he has earned the hearing.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Hapoel Haifa have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.72 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Hapoel Haifa, and 1 appearances in 26 say he has earned the hearing.
Warm-up bib, ninety minutes of watching, and a handshake at the end that fooled nobody. Big matches tell you who a manager trusts; this one told Alon Turgeman.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The offer from Bnei Sakhnin for Omri Altman was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.63 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Faisal Saeed. 1‑0 against Beitar Jerusalem, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hapoel Haifa they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.34 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Freddy Vargas and Hapoel Haifa agree another 4 years.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
A 2‑0 win over Hapoel Raanana, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
1‑4 against Hapoel Tel Aviv, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Maccabi Netanya go through and Hapoel Haifa go home, 0‑2 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.60 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Lachlan Jackson was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.81 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.10 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hapoel Haifa, and it is not being withdrawn.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I watch every Hapoel Haifa game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Beitar Jerusalem runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.12 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Shots: 7. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Shots: 6. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Hapoel Haifa, and 0 appearances in 18 say he has earned the hearing.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hapoel Haifa, and it is not being withdrawn.
An individual honour is a strange thing in a team game, and the best of them are never argued with. He has had the sort of year that ends with his name being read out, and Hapoel Haifa have had the benefit of it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The name of Régis N'do has come up in conversations Hapoel Haifa were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Daniel Dappa. 2‑0 against Hapoel Acre, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Marked 8.11 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Ivan Kričak has his answer from Hapoel Haifa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
It needed Lachlan Jackson to find the net to bring anything home at all: 2‑2 against Maccabi Netanya, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Sofiane Alakouch trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hapoel Haifa, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Shots: 12. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
0‑4 to Bnei Sakhnin, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Dario Župarić was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
“I watch every Hapoel Haifa game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Bnei Sakhnin runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Yoav Gerafi knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Dario Župarić was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Hapoel Haifa, and 0 appearances in 13 say he has earned the hearing.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hapoel Haifa, and both men came out saying it was fine.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hapoel Haifa can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 20 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hapoel Haifa can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Sofiane Alakouch was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.25 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I watch every Hapoel Haifa game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Bnei Sakhnin runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Itay Buganim trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hapoel Haifa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Shon Levy is a Hapoel Haifa player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
The shirt still fits. Tomer Natcho is back at Hapoel Haifa, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Gil Hemed is a Hapoel Haifa player again, and the town has its story of the summer.