Ben Mansford: "I will forever be a Maccabist"

Goldhaar ("You can not work for Mitch"), Ivica ("I want to work with him again") and the struggle against Maccabi Haifa (the two clubs will always attract each other "). Ben Mansford, former Maccabi Tel Aviv general manager, returned to Israel for the first time And he really misses me with Schechter in Kiryat Shalom

Yaniv Tuchman

28/03/2022

Monday, March 28, 2022, 8:00 p.m.

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Summary: Maccabi Tel Aviv - Bnei Sakhnin 0: 0 (Sport 1)

When his baby was born a year and a half ago, it was clear to Ben Mansford that he would give her a completely Israeli name.

"Beth and I decided to call her Noa," he says, hugging the little one at the cafe in Neve Tzedek where we have breakfast together.

"Noa is not a British name. There is a comfortable son in England. Noa has a daughter but I had no better way to remember Israel that I love so much than to give my daughter the name that is perhaps the most common name for girls in the country."

More than two years have passed since Ben Mansford left Israel for the job that awaited him at Blackpool Football Club, but the longing has not stopped.

Last weekend he landed with his wife Beth and their daughter on their first visit to Tel Aviv.

"We wanted to come even earlier," he said yesterday with a slight apology.

"But there was the corona that changed the world. Now we are here and there are so many people I want to meet. Some I have already seen and there is more I look forward to seeing. I was very excited for returning to Israel. For a week we cried, Beth and I,

He left a few months after Vladan Ivic's first championship.

This was after two and a half years in which he was the general manager of Maccabi Tel Aviv. He arrived in June 2017 and entered the season in which Jordi Cruyff became coach after five years in which he was the professional manager of Maccabi Tel Aviv. Leeds United. Only a few months after landing at the club, the fair play sanction was imposed on Maccabi Tel Aviv. In his time, Maccabi Tel Aviv was built on the young people who returned from the questions.

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Feels good in Israel.

Ben Mansford and his family (Photo: Walla !, Yaniv Tuchman)

It was not easy to get into a club where Jordi Cruyff was half God.

There was always talk of struggles between you.

"It's really not true. I know they said it, but it really was not. I really appreciated Jordy and respected him the way I think he respected me. I learned a lot from Jordy in my first season at Maccabi Tel Aviv. Jordy was A brilliant performer. A gifted performer and giver. You can not compare the messages that purchasing players would receive from Jordy and the messages they would receive from me. Cruyff is perhaps the strongest name in world football. "The championship and it was a season I will not forget for the rest of my life. Dan Glazer, Yonatan Cohen, Shachar Phiben, who became my favorite, broke into Maccabi Tel Aviv and of course Itai Schechter, we added him."

"I really like Itai Schechter and think he was a very important player for us at Maccabi Tel Aviv. I will take advantage of this vacation here to try and meet him."

"Schechter was a very important player for Maccabi Tel Aviv" (Photo: Ariel Shalom)

Maccabi Tel Aviv won another championship last season, but last season the championship went to Maccabi Haifa.

Why did Maccabi Tel Aviv lose the most important title, which this season will probably also be green?

"Because Maccabi Haifa started to do things more correctly. It acquired significant players and brought in a coach like Barak Bachar, who is the best Israeli coach. The presence of Gal Alberman, who learned a lot from Jordi Cruyff like me, added a lot to Maccabi Haifa. I definitely give a lot of credit to Maccabi "Haifa. But without a doubt there is the other side and that is what Maccabi Tel Aviv went through. The separation of Moldan Ivitch and important players at Maccabi Tel Aviv led to Maccabi having to be redeployed. It was a period of transition and change and it affects every club."

"Noble Omar, Dor Micha, Dor Peretz, Yonatan Cohen and other players who left, such as Jair Amador, Chico Opwado or Schechter, are probably missing, but do not forget that Maccabi Tel Aviv was successful during this period in Europe and that is very important. It is not that Maccabi Tel Aviv "It went down completely or disappeared. In those two years, Maccabi Tel Aviv made a lot of money from Europe and that is very important for the future of the club."

"The clear sign is the acquisition of Juvanovic for almost 2 million euros. The interest in Eran Zehavi also shows Mitch's plans. I do not know if Zehavi will be at Maccabi Tel Aviv, but the fact that Mitch wants to bring him back shows exactly what Mitch wants. Mitch is an amazing person. "I am convinced that if things close with Eran, it will only be between him and Mitch. No one will be involved in it."

"The clearest sign of Goldhaar's intentions is the acquisition of Juvanovic" (Photo: Danny Maron)

You mentioned Barak Bachar.

Why did Maccabi Tel Aviv not bring him after Ivica?

"I was not here to answer that."

"I've never heard anything like this when I was at Maccabi Tel Aviv. I think Mitch and Jack are always looking for the right coach no matter if he is Israeli. I think Maccabi Tel Aviv has been very successful in appointing foreign coaches. Look at Vladan Ivic, Paco Eastern, Paulo Sousa "Oscar Garcia, Selvisha Yukanovich, even a fool Arbeldeza who has been less successful here but has been doing great things since then. Maccabi Tel Aviv has brought great coaches in the last ten years."

"Three months after I arrived at Maccabi Tel Aviv we received the email announcing the fair play. It was not easy. We realized we had to live differently and change things at Maccabi Tel Aviv. But I said we should take it as an opportunity to do things differently and after a few months we decided to go on a project "Young people and raise a lot of the loanees to the first group."

Know beautiful days together.

Mansford and Goldhaar (Photo: Danny Maron)

The fair play was like thunder on a clear day for Mitch.

"I guess so, but for me it was to look for solutions elsewhere. I think after the first championship and after I left, the world has entered the corona period and it helped a bit to see things differently and Maccabi won the second championship. Maccabi Tel Aviv discovered a lot of players thanks to fair play. It was not necessarily a bad thing. Mitch invests a lot in the youth department. He and Yankele Shachar invest the most. It is true that Maccabi Petah Tikva and Ashdod also bring out good players from their departments, but still Mitch and Yankele put in the most and thanks to fair play it was possible to enjoy the players. Sold like Yonatan Cohen. "

"Why not? I think it's wonderful that Barak is the head of the football department and Sharon Tamam is the CEO.

Barak learned a lot from Jordi and he is a very intelligent guy.

Barak grew up next to Moran Meiri, next to me, but he was next to Jordi for many years and he is very good to Maccabi Tel Aviv.

In the end, Mitch decides on the appointments and he would not have chosen Barak and entrusted him with a lot of authority and responsibility, if he had not seen what potential Barak has.

I think he made the right decision. "

"I certainly miss Maccabi Tel Aviv more than she misses me" (Photo: Walla !, Yaniv Tuchman)

Fans have a lot of claims, especially during this time, that the club is looking for more marketing activities that will bring in money instead of messing with the important things that it is to bring degrees.

"But it just goes together. Making money from selling retro shirts or fighting for every subscription to Bloomfield is exactly what will bring the championships in the future. Sharon and the people with whom like Daniel and Tal do a great job. Avi Mizrahi does a great job with the tickets. There are a lot of people behind the scenes. "They are very professional and that's very important. Jack Angelidis has been here for weeks now and believe me he sees everything and especially Mitch. Mitch is a man who can not be worked on."

"Absolutely. I'm not saying that Mitch reads every email. He has a lot of things and a lot of business, but he knows a lot about what's going on at Maccabi Tel Aviv. He knows everything and everything he needs."

"I do not think so. Maccabi Tel Aviv is bigger than me. I had a great time at Maccabi and here I am returning here for the first time since the Corona, but Maccabi has progressed."

"I certainly miss Maccabi more than she misses me."

"It is wonderful that Barak Yitzhaki is the head of the football department" (Photo: Yotam Ronen)

But good for you in Blackpool.

"I'm very good. I have a great owner, I have a great project I manage in Blackpool. I'm glad Israelis are more exposed to Blackpool now because we are in the second division. But Maccabi will always be special for me. Some clubs can talk about history like Maccabi Tel Aviv has and I talk About the term Maccabi which is very ancient? ".

"Certainly. I always want to instill in the spirit of the Maccabi Tel Aviv club also us in Blackpool. Maccabi Tel Aviv has strong people. Good people who want to work hard and Jordi was one of them. We took a coach to Blackpool who was in Liverpool and it goes well. We also have a lot Young people like I was in my time at Maccabi. "

"Certainly. I will forever be a Maccabist. Look at how Manchester United collapsed after Alex Ferguson left. Maccabi Tel Aviv knows how to maintain itself even though good people leave. There is a strong owner who knows how to find the solutions for everyone who leaves. Look how much Manchester United invests to "To be among the first four and it is very difficult for her. Maccabi Tel Aviv has been the highest for the last decade and is doing it even though there is a change of players and a change of coaches."

"Whatever happens in Israel, Maccabi will be up and what pushes it, among other things, is the rivalry with Maccabi Haifa. Maccabi Tel Aviv attracts Haifa and Haifa attracts Maccabi Tel Aviv. This season, Hapoel Beer Sheva is also in the picture because whoever holds Itai Schechter will always be up."

"I have no idea. I do not know what happened."

"Schechter was very good to Maccabi.

"Yeni can easily make the transition from football to management" (Photo: Danny Maron)

Do you think that Sharan Yeni and Avi Rikan will be able to take over management at Maccabi in the future, as is currently happening to Barak Yitzhaki?

"Certainly. If Sharan wants to stay in football, he is the one who can make the move easily. Avi Rikan also has the ability. They both speak English and other languages ​​and both have a history in Europe as well. Both are very professionals. I also like Eyal Golsa. He is a fighter and he is a winner. "He is a young Maine and a mercenary, but he is also an asset to Maccabi."

"Never say never. I guess Jordi was asked the same question and so was Vladan. Oscar Garcia came back here and every time there was a war. I know I will always have fun here. I will always be good at Maccabi Tel Aviv, but right now I'm in England and good. "I have what I do. We are doing well and we have a game on Saturday against Nottingham. I hope the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans are holding their fingers."

"I wish. I would be very happy if that happens. Waldan is a tremendous coach."

"Eran Zehavi could have been very successful in England."

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