The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Bnei Sakhnin keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. George Diba will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad13 Aug 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The name of Maor Erlich has come up in conversations Hapoel Haifa were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Hapoel Haifa have made the call to Criciúma. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hapoel Haifa people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“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 The request is on a desk at Hapoel Haifa, and it is not being withdrawn.
$200.0K on the table at Bnei Sakhnin. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Shai Elias and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Willy Agada was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Hapoel Haifa, another week without a signature from Ben Hamed Touré.
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Maxim Plakushchenko is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hapoel Haifa have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“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.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Squad30 Jul 2029
9 new faces, and Hapoel Haifa are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Stav Nachmani, and the manager let it.
Squad30 Jul 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saidu Fofanah is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“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.
Nobody makes a documentary about a hamstring and everybody in the game fears one. Hapoel Haifa will be careful with the return date, because the second one is always worse than the first.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
The offer went to Bnei Sakhnin this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Manuel Mantey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout23 Jul 2029
The manager has not finished forgetting Sa'ar Fadida's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager makes an example of Gustavo Morais
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hapoel Haifa have lost him in all but the paperwork.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Bnei Sakhnin keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. George Diba will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Hapoel Haifa are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
In brief
The dugoutRotem Hatuel has become a man the manager trusts
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hapoel Haifa people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“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.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Maccabi Netanya is saying, and nobody at Hapoel Haifa is enjoying the guessing.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saidu Fofanah was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
Squad2 Jul 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Atlético Goianiense said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Hapoel Haifa, another week without a signature from Ben Hamed Touré.
7 arrivals, an average age nobody would call a squad, and a set of parents being shown around a building their sons will spend more time in than at home. The scouting has already happened; today is only the paperwork.
The deal with Hapoel Tel Aviv is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Squad25 Jun 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. América Mineiro have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Manuel Mantey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. George Diba will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Maccabi Tel Aviv said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Hapoel Haifa have made the call to Goiás. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Palmeiras have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Squad18 Jun 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saidu Fofanah is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
In brief
The dugoutRotem Hatuel has become a man the manager trusts
“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.
Squad11 Jun 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Palmeiras have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hapoel Haifa are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined 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.
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.
Squad4 Jun 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Netanya have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Manuel Mantey 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 loan enquiry to Maccabi Netanya: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Lawrence Agyekum and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout28 May 2029
Sa'ar Fadida is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
4 appearances and 1 goals is not a season, it is a year somebody has lost. Whether that is his fault, the borrowing club's or the people who arranged it is the argument the next few weeks will have.
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.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
Squad21 May 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
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 is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
In brief
The dugoutRégis N'do asks for a word with the manager
“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.
Squad14 May 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Lawrence Agyekum is on it.
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Hapoel Haifa are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Shai Elias signs something — a contract at Hapoel Haifa or anywhere else — this column belongs to 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.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
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.
“I watch every Hapoel Haifa game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Maccabi Petach Tikva runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Lawrence Agyekum and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Apr 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
“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.
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.
Dario Župarić and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Nobody makes a documentary about a hamstring and everybody in the game fears one. Hapoel Haifa will be careful with the return date, because the second one is always worse than the first.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Willy Agada falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout23 Apr 2029
The manager has not finished forgetting Dario Župarić's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
In brief
The dugoutRotem Hatuel has become a man the manager trusts
The dugoutAlon Turgeman asks for a word with the manager
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.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Lawrence Agyekum is on it.
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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Régis N'do has his answer from Hapoel Haifa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hapoel Haifa are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
“I did not go to Maccabi Petach Tikva to sit and watch. I want to come back to Hapoel Haifa and fight for my place.” 4 appearances in 12 matches say the rest.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Igal Bekker commits to Hapoel Haifa for another 4 years.
Squad2 Apr 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Willy Agada is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Jonathan Agyapong 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 bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
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.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
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.
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout26 Mar 2029
The manager has not finished forgetting Dario Župarić's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
In brief
SquadHapoel Haifa are still strangers to each other
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Manuel Mantey 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.
Position 11 on 23 points. Every season is a story and this is the last line of it, and now the club has three months to decide what the next one is about.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about 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.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Maor Erlich will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
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.
Squad12 Mar 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager makes an example of Djibril Diop
A midfielder is measured on whether the team functions when he is on the pitch, which is nearly impossible to see and completely obvious in retrospect. 10 actions, 6.69, and a manager who will not be substituting him again in a hurry.
The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 14 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Hapoel Haifa are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. George Diba will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Hapoel Haifa are no longer polite ones.
Squad26 Feb 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout26 Feb 2029
The manager has not finished forgetting Dario Župarić's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Guy Shechter after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Squad19 Feb 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad19 Feb 2029
9 new faces, and Hapoel Haifa are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Guy Shechter after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Rotem Hatuel is on it.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Maor Erlich will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hapoel Haifa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Hapoel Haifa offered $21.0K; Maccabi Haifa said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Jonathan Agyapong and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout12 Feb 2029
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Guy Shechter to a room that had heard them before.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
In brief
Looking aheadHapoel Haifa take on the side everybody is chasing
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 9 arrived, 5 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Hapoel Haifa had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Fluminense, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
$21.0K on the table at Maccabi Haifa. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Squad5 Feb 2029
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Tel Aviv have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Jonathan Agyapong 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 have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hapoel Haifa people have started saying his name in the past tense.
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.
Maccabi Petach Tikva pay $340.0K, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Squad29 Jan 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Manuel Mantey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Willy Agada. 1‑0 against Hapoel Raanana, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
7.87, 1 on the scoresheet, and the specific comedy of a back-four player celebrating like somebody who does this every week. He does not, and that is exactly why the ground reacted the way it did.
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.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Netanya have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The phone has started ringing about Maor Erlich again, and this time the name on the line is Hapoel Acre. Hapoel Haifa are listening politely and promising nothing.
12 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Hapoel Kfar Saba waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know 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.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Mustapha Gbolahan and Hapoel Haifa agree another 3 years.
Squad15 Jan 2029
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
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.
“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.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Hapoel Haifa have done the hard part with Hapoel Beer Sheva, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
The shirt still fits. Rotem Hatuel 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.
The name of Shaker Abu Husein has come up in conversations Hapoel Haifa were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
10 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
“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.
Lawrence Agyekum and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Hapoel Haifa has been clear about where Shai Elias stands, which is more than many ever get.
9 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Cristhian Loor 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Successful dribbles: 13. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Goalkeepers do not get to make mistakes; they get to make goals. He made one, he knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Position 9, 14 points, and every result so far reduced to one line. The second half of the season starts with the same squad and a different set of expectations.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
It needed Dani Amerr to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Hapoel Kiryat Shmona, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
“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.
Successful dribbles: 12. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Dario Župarić and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad4 Dec 2028
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
The dugout4 Dec 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Dario Župarić's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout4 Dec 2028
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 1‑3 Guy Shechter left the room before anybody could ask which.
In brief
The dugoutDjibril Diop asks for a word with the manager
200 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Successful dribbles: 17. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dan Glazer was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Something was said to Igal Bekker and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
Everybody saw it before anybody said it. At 37 the numbers say 3 points down on what he was, and the question for Hapoel Haifa is how to handle a man they owe a great deal.
Maor Erlich 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.
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Hapoel Haifa told Shaker Abu Husein something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Alon Turgeman trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Stav Nachmani’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Hapoel Haifa needing him to play as if none of it matters.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Igal Bekker has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hapoel Haifa are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
14 combined actions and 6.76. The job he did is the one that shows up as other people looking good, and the only reliable way to notice it is to watch what happens on the afternoons he is missing.
Squad13 Nov 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Maccabi Haifa held the lead for 4 minutes, which is not long enough to enjoy it. Hapoel Haifa answered before the celebration had properly finished, and the shape of the afternoon changed with it.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Cristhian Loor and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one Hapoel Haifa will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.
Squad6 Nov 2028
A place in the month's best eleven for Willy Agada
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Willy Agada has come out of that comparison in the side, and Hapoel Haifa have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
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.
In brief
The dugoutTamir Arbel has become a man the manager trusts
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Something was said to Dan Glazer and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
Maccabi Petach Tikva next, and one man in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa is suggesting he is out of form. The manager simply wanted somebody with a different set of qualities for ninety specific minutes, and there is nothing a player can train to fix that.
“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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Guy Shechter on a 2‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
“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.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Hapoel Kfar Saba in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
“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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Igal Bekker’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Hapoel Haifa needing him to play as if none of it matters.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Hapoel Haifa know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
A brace, and Willy Agada takes the afternoon — 8.55
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Willy Agada provided it, and the 8.55 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Willy Agada. 2‑0 against Hapoel Acre, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
100 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
The dugout9 Oct 2028
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Guy Shechter, on a 2‑0 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
0‑3 against Hapoel Beer Sheva, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
A defender on the scoresheet, which happens rarely enough that everybody in the ground remembers who took the corner. 1 for him, and a mark of 7.88 for the rest of it.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Marked 8.06 — 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.
0‑3 to Hapoel Tel Aviv, 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.
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.
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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Régis N'do has his answer from Hapoel Haifa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
The dugout25 Sep 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Dario Župarić's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad18 Sep 2028
Dor Hebron falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Cristhian Loor and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad18 Sep 2028
7 new faces, and Hapoel Haifa are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Corinthians keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Hapoel Haifa, another week without a signature from Régis N'do.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 22 arrived, 7 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Everything agreed with another club, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Sampaio Corrêa is saying, and nobody at Hapoel Haifa is enjoying the guessing.
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.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Hapoel Kiryat Shmona said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad4 Sep 2028
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Two goals and a mark of 8.64 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
“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.
Hapoel Haifa had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Atlético Goianiense, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Tal Natcho has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Amit Benayoun has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
The deal with Atlético Goianiense is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
The offer went to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Djibril Diop and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad21 Aug 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Tel Aviv have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
9 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Hapoel Haifa, another week without a signature from Arad Bar.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Fluminense keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Tunde Azeez has, at Hapoel Haifa, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Squad14 Aug 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He is doing things on a Saturday afternoon that nobody around him can answer, which is flattering for about one season and a problem after that. Hapoel Haifa will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
The dugout14 Aug 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Alon Turgeman's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The deal with Fluminense is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Criciúma keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Lawrence Agyekum and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Hapoel Beer Sheva have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Hapoel Haifa have gone to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Squad31 Jul 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Lecce said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Hapoel Haifa know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Hapoel Haifa. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The terraces24 Jul 2028
Supporters turn on the $600.0K sale of Ivan Kričak
He is going to Hapoel Tel Aviv, the club has $600.0K it did not have on Friday, and the phone-ins have already decided how they feel about that. Selling well and selling somebody they loved are not the same skill.
Hapoel Tel Aviv pay $600.0K, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Tel Aviv have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Hapoel Haifa have made the call to Criciúma. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hapoel Haifa people have started saying his name in the past tense.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Hapoel Haifa had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Atlético Goianiense, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
The offer went to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Tel Aviv have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad17 Jul 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
7 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
The dugout17 Jul 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Alon Turgeman's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 32 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Flamengo is saying, and nobody at Hapoel Haifa is enjoying the guessing.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Hapoel Kiryat Shmona said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Atlético Goianiense have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
“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.
In brief
The dugoutTamir Arbel has become a man the manager trusts
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The deal with Flamengo is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Hapoel Haifa have gone to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Tomás Villagra and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
Signed today, seen by nobody for years, and one of them may one day be the reason the club exists. That is the whole of the argument for an academy, and it is a good one.
In brief
The dugoutMaor Erlich knocks on the manager’s door
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 47 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Everything agreed with Hapoel Kfar Saba, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
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.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Maccabi Tel Aviv have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad26 Jun 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Shaker Abu Husein and Hapoel Haifa agree another 4 years.
Hapoel Haifa have made the call to Flamengo. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 54 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Tomer Zarfati has gone, the accounts have $520.0K in them, and the supporters have the feeling of having been sold something themselves. Good business and a good decision are not always the same thing.
The fee is $770.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Bnei Yehuda drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
The deal with Maccabi Netanya is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Lawrence Agyekum 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.
Maccabi Petach Tikva paid $520.0K and Hapoel Haifa took it, which is the whole story in one sentence. The longer version involves a wage budget and will be told all season.
Stav Nachmani was the name on every phone-in, and the club has gone and signed him for $770.0K. For one week the board can do no wrong, which is a week most boards never get.
Squad19 Jun 2028
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hapoel Haifa have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 18 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Hapoel Haifa and Bnei Yehuda have settled on $770.0K. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
The deal with Bnei Yehuda is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
19 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“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.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 25 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Everybody at Hapoel Haifa saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 37 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Hapoel Kiryat Shmona have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad5 Jun 2028
George Diba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Rotem Hatuel has his answer from Hapoel Haifa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Sa'ar Fadida trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
26 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hapoel Haifa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad29 May 2028
Tomer Zarfati has improved at 24, which nobody expected
Careers are supposed to plateau and then decline, and the players who ignore that are always the ones who were listening on the training ground. 3 points of it, over months, at an age where the direction normally only goes one way.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Hapoel Haifa told Ivan Kričak something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
In brief
The dugoutTomer Zarfati asks for a word with the manager
The dugoutRotem Hatuel has become a man the manager trusts
34 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hapoel Haifa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
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.
Squad22 May 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout22 May 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Alon Turgeman's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
41 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Everybody saw it before anybody said it. At 39 the numbers say 3 points down on what he was, and the question for Hapoel Haifa is how to handle a man they owe a great deal.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and George Diba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Manahati Lestusen has written the date down.
49 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hapoel Haifa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“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.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Dario Župarić and Hapoel Haifa agree another 2 years.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hapoel Haifa are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
56 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hapoel Haifa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
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.
Squad1 May 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Dan Biton is on it.
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
64 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and George Diba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout24 Apr 2028
Alon Turgeman is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Willy Agada signs something — a contract at Hapoel Haifa or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
71 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“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.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
He looks like a man who lives here now rather than one who is working here. It took most of a season, and at Hapoel Haifa the difference is visible from the back of the stand.
The words a physio says slowly. 79 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
“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.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
8 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
“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.
86 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hapoel Haifa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Tomás Villagra 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.
Squad3 Apr 2028
George Diba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
94 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Hapoel Haifa told Alon Turgeman something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
In brief
The dugoutDor Malul has become a man the manager trusts
101 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hapoel Haifa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Marlon and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad20 Mar 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know it.
“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 manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
1‑2 to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad13 Mar 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Marked 6.71 on 12 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ivan Kričak, and the manager let it.
The dugout6 Mar 2028
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑3 defeat, delivered by Guy Shechter to a room that had heard them before.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Dan Biton is on it.
Bnei Yehuda made Hapoel Haifa work for it, but the scoreboard read 3‑2 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Shai Elias is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
A performance of 8.13 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings28 Feb 2028
Dan Biton was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.10. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Alon Turgeman will call it something else in private.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Alon Turgeman's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Guy Shechter, on a 3‑2 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
0‑2 to Maccabi Haifa, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad21 Feb 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Hapoel Haifa pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
The dugout21 Feb 2028
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Guy Shechter left the room before anybody could ask which.
The manager wanted a different profile for this opponent, which is a real football reason and no consolation. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Bnei Yehuda in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Tomás Villagra and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Shai Elias was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
7 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager’s verdict
Looking aheadHapoel Haifa take on the side everybody is chasing
“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.
Boardroom7 Feb 2028
Hapoel Haifa close the window on a squad of their own making
7 in and 3 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
$1.1M on the table at Bnei Yehuda. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Grêmio is saying, and nobody at Hapoel Haifa is enjoying the guessing.
The shirt still fits. Régis N'do 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.
Tomás Villagra 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.
Squad7 Feb 2028
Shai Elias falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Hapoel Haifa had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Santos, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
3 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.
Marlon 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.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Vélez have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Marked 8.32. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Hapoel Haifa.
Squad31 Jan 2028
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 9.25, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Player ratings24 Jan 2028
A brace, and Willy Agada takes the afternoon — 8.62
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Willy Agada provided it, and the 8.62 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
“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.
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Shai Elias scored, was marked 7.89, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Maor Erlich is a Hapoel Haifa player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
The deal with Santos is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
The clubs have shaken hands with Maccabi Petach Tikva; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
10 without a win is the sort of run that changes how a town talks about its club, and Hapoel Beer Sheva were the afternoon it stopped. Nothing is fixed by one result and everything feels different by one.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Hapoel Kfar Saba have kept their man, and Hapoel Haifa go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Kervin Andrade. 2‑1 against Hapoel Beer Sheva, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Kervin Andrade has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Squad17 Jan 2028
George Diba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
8.20. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
0‑3 to Hapoel Tel Aviv, 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.
“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.
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Lawrence Agyekum is living that version at Hapoel Haifa, and it tends to show in the first month.
Everything agreed with Maccabi Haifa, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hapoel Haifa know 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.
400 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Hapoel Haifa asked and Maccabi Tel Aviv said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Shaker Abu Husein has come out of that comparison in the side, and Hapoel Haifa have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ivan Kričak trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout3 Jan 2028
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Guy Shechter was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room was either.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.25, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
A defender on the scoresheet, which happens rarely enough that everybody in the ground remembers who took the corner. 1 for him, and a mark of 7.08 for the rest of it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and George Diba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑1, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
“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.
Position 10, 13 points, and every result so far reduced to one line. The second half of the season starts with the same squad and a different set of expectations.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hapoel Haifa are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Shai Elias scored, was marked 7.99, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Hapoel Haifa are no longer polite ones.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
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.
The dugout6 Dec 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Tomer Zarfati's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Gustavo Morais has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.
The dugout6 Dec 2027
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Guy Shechter chose the glass-half-full version of 1‑1; the supporters left with the other one.
Bnei Yehuda left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad29 Nov 2027
George Diba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Ninety specific minutes wanted a different sort of player, and the manager picked one. He is not out of form and he is not in the side, and both are true.
Beitar Jerusalem next, and one man in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
1 error, one goal, and a night in front of the same three seconds. He will see it tonight, tomorrow and probably in February, and everybody who has played knows exactly which frame he keeps stopping on.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
It needed Willy Agada to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Maccabi Haifa, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout22 Nov 2027
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Guy Shechter chose the glass-half-full version of 1‑1; the supporters left with the other one.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Bnei Yehuda in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ivan Kričak trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Looking ahead15 Nov 2027
Hapoel Haifa take on the side everybody is chasing
Maccabi Haifa arrive as leaders. A side at the top is beaten roughly once a month, and the club that does it gets a week it remembers for a year.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Rotem Hatuel is on it.
Maccabi Haifa next, and one man in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Willy Agada signs something — a contract at Hapoel Haifa or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The award is a small thing with a heavy meaning: for four weeks nobody in this division did his job better. Hapoel Haifa have the trophy on a shelf and the player in the side.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Dan Biton has come out of that comparison in the side, and Hapoel Haifa have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
The dugout8 Nov 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Guy Shechter was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room was either.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Marked 8.01 — 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 dugout1 Nov 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Guy Shechter kept it short after the 2‑1 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Nobody at Hapoel Haifa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Ninety specific minutes wanted a different sort of player, and the manager picked one. He is not out of form and he is not in the side, and both are true.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Kervin Andrade has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
George Diba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Player ratings25 Oct 2027
Kervin Andrade was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.17. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Guy Shechter kept it short after the 1‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Hapoel Kfar Saba next, and one man in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Player ratings18 Oct 2027
Dan Biton was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.32. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
7 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
“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.
The dugout18 Oct 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Guy Shechter was not hiding it after 1‑1, and nobody in the Hapoel Haifa dressing room was either.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Rotem Hatuel is on it.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hapoel Haifa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
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 is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Sa'ar Fadida trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Hapoel Acre in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 68 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Dan Biton scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Hapoel Beer Sheva, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Words at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. George Diba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tamir Arbel is on it.
Maccabi Petach Tikva are out and Hapoel Haifa go through, 3‑1 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hapoel Haifa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The board had gone up, the arguing had started, and then the ball was in the net in the 95th minute. Maccabi Petach Tikva will replay every second of the added time for a week.
Two goals and a mark of 8.08 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Shaker Abu Husein has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
200 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
In brief
SquadWords at Hapoel Haifa training over how hard people work
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hapoel Haifa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
At 20 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Everybody saw it before anybody said it. At 36 the numbers say 3 points down on what he was, and the question for Hapoel Haifa is how to handle a man they owe a great deal.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.