"I fell into gambling, I reached the abyss. Berkovich saved me" - Voila! sport

Former soccer player Lior Rosenthal was born in Haifa on August 2, 1965, two years younger than Rooney, the eldest, and has two younger sisters.

"We grew up in Kiryat Eliezer on Ben Gurion Boulevard, our house was a stone's throw from the stadium wall. Father arrived in the early fifties from Romania, mother immigrated from Morocco. I speak Romanian from my father and French from my mother."

He is married for the second time with two sons from the first wife and a daughter from the current wife, lives in the Carmel Castle.

His occupation is unusual: "For several years now I have been working and treating people who are addicted to sports betting, through an association which is subsidized by the lottery.

I am an expert in treating people who have been drawn into the world of big gambling."

Beautiful and less beautiful days.

Lior Rosenthal (Photo: Maor Alxalsi)

Why did we start this time with life after retirement?

Because that's where Rosenthal's story gets more complicated.

"At the age of 29 I had to retire from football due to a serious injury. I had a tycoon insurance agency together with Gili, Eli Gutman's brother. From retirement it all started - I got into gambling, an industry that is a whole world for those who fall into it. It led to huge sums of money of an unimaginable magnitude. For me, it led to a divorce, to a fall into the abyss. My work and treatment today are discreet, I treat many people."

"It was a move of character. There were friends and family members who supported me and helped during the recovery from my addiction. My brother Roni helped a lot financially and with the help of conversations and actions, Ofer Mizrahi was also there for me."

"Berkovic is like a true brother to me. Eyal called his son Lior like my name. I called my son Ley, like his daughter. Eyal helped me get out of the difficult sports betting, with generous financial support and was there by my side every step of the way."

"In my lectures, I talk about myself, about the fact that I understood the insanity of gambling addiction, I lost myself knowing. I took a lemon and made lemonade out of it, with personal transcendence. Today I also discreetly accompany footballers. Today, God willing, I am organized, I have assets and it's not obvious".

Career ended at the age of 29. Lior Rosenthal in the late term at Maccabi Haifa (Photo: Maariv, Adi Avishi)

And now, to football.

"At the age of 10, I signed up for Maccabi Haifa, Roni preceded me. The first coach who increased my love for football was Lazar Steinberg, a Brazilian Jew who played for Hapoel Kiryat Haim. Through him I received the foundation for a good education and sports values. Later on, the coach was Asher Almani, who made it clear that a footballer has stages on his path, And only those who can and are willing to meet the tasks will succeed. I always played in a higher age group, sometimes with Roni as well. I played in the striker position, I was fast, a good kicker and a scorer."

"When I played for the boys, Hapoel Haifa had a neighborhood league that I wanted to play in and the temptation was great. I played there without a player's card and returned to Maccabi Haifa."

At the age of 16 he experienced a growth crisis.

"In the summer, I grew in height at an extraordinary speed. I lost the momentum of progress in the striker position. Coach Johnny Hardy, who promoted me to the youth team, made me a right defender in the 1982/83 season. In the team, I played with Nir Klinger, Ofer Mizrahi, Erez Gutman, Gadi Ohion and others. I was called up to the Maccabi Israel national team and to all the boys and youth national teams."

Friends at heart.

Rosenthal with Ofer Mizrahi (photo: courtesy of the photographer)

Shlomo Sharaf introduced him to the seniors, whom he calls "Mori and Rabbi" and tells how he developed under him: "The message he gave me was to be aggressive as a right defender, where he placed me from time to time. My first game was against Shimson Tel Aviv in the 84/85 season, we won 1 :3 And I cooked a gate."

"During training at Maccabi Haifa, Roni and Zahi Armali were afraid to play on my side. Shlomo shouted at them that they were running away from the wing I played in."

Everything looked good, but in 1985/6 a series of injuries began.

"The direction of Sharaf and Maccabi Haifa was to win a third consecutive championship title. Shlomo assigned me tasks of personal guarding players such as Nir Levin, Eli Derix and others. I injured my ankle ligaments, a tear that led to surgery and an absence of about six months from the field. Today, in my free time, I listen to old tapes of 'Shirim and goals', there is an interview with David Schweitzer in which he says "Now Maccabi Haifa is without the injured Lior Rosenthal, we'll see who will do his job in the midfield".

We lost the championship in the game in Bloomfield with Landau's lone goal."

In 1988, management changed at Maccabi Haifa. "There were no financial conditions, the wages were slave wages.

Players on other teams made three times my salary, which was $25,000 to $30,000 per season.

I put in an international quarantine form, flew to Belgium and started training in the P group.

C.

Bruges, where my brother Ronnie played.

There was a negotiation, but the move didn't work out."

When Lior played on the wing, Roni ran to the other side.

The Rosenthal brothers (photo: courtesy of the photographer)

Then Giora Spiegel summons you to the Bnei Yehuda neighborhood.

"Bnei Yehuda was at the bottom of the table in 1988/9, I arrived in the middle of the season and at Spiegel I was in peak form. From a team deep at the bottom we managed to survive in the lower house, in a season in which Maccabi Haifa was the champion. I earned more at Bnei Yehuda in half a season than I earned at Maccabi Haifa in a whole season. I loved it very much The neighborhood and the fans were connected to me. Chairman Gad Solmi gave Spiegel permission to close with me on a continuation and meet my demands." The

"Maccabi Tel Aviv chairman Danny Laufer and his wife Debi took me for a long ride in their car. The offer to sign a long-term contract was tempting. The salary offer was higher than the neighborhood, I couldn't refuse and I signed."

At Maccabi Tel Aviv, he says, "They wanted me to arrive at the end of the first season at the center of the defense in place of the late Avi Cohen.

This was a very strong statement, Uri Malmilian and Avi Cohen from Beitar Jerusalem also came to the team. There were a lot of expectations."

In training and in the preparatory games, he started alongside Avi Cohen ("I was in top form, I scored goals, everything seemed full of hope for a great season") and then an injury came in the training camp in Germany.

"In a training game I stood with my back to the ball, a German player ran into me, I felt as if I had been shot with a rifle."

He was taken for examination by P.'s doctor.

C.

cologne

"He checked when I was partially sedated and said in German 'de bein caput'. I understood that the injury to the knee ligaments was severe. Surgery and rehabilitation of more than six months. When I returned to training and games, it was not the same, Maccabi Tel Aviv finished in fourth place."

experienced a deep crisis.

Lior Rosenthal at Beitar Tel Aviv (Photo: Maariv, Danny Maron)

The next stop was the mother station - Maccabi Haifa.

"After I left Maccabi Haifa in anger at the time, and in quarantine, it seems quite rare that they would bring me back, but Sharaf insisted. I returned to the team of Berkovic, Atar and the others, until another injury and quite a long rehabilitation. When Giora Spiegel arrived at Maccabi Haifa in the 1993/94 season, I left the club To Beitar Tel Aviv in the national league."

There, he testifies, he went through a mental crisis. "I was 28 years old, I felt that this was my swan song in football in the second league.

I felt bad mentally, a crisis of severe anxiety.

I'm married and suddenly going to end my career, I couldn't sleep, I didn't sleep for whole nights.

I couldn't do without pills.

I, who was born with a golden spoon, didn't get along mentally."

In the middle of the season, he met with chairman Artzi Ben Yaakov and told him about his situation.

"Arzi is a huge past player, and a great person. He graciously responded to my request to be released from the team."

Berkovich helped him try to continue using the Shapira guns and Hapoel Haifa.

"He arranged a contract for me at Hapoel Haifa under coach Ametsia Lebkovitch followed by Roni Dora. They were surprised by my ability and I even played in the derby."

And here it ends.

"I twisted my knee badly, Doctor Besser determined that there was no point in analyzing the place, I was destined to stop and stop playing football at the age of 29."

did not stop supporting.

Berkovich (Photo: Kobi Eliyahu)

He looks back proudly.

"I'm not frustrated, I'm proud of what I did, I also had one game against Malta in the Israeli team. I feel like someone who was accepted into the most elite fighting units, and was injured in every battle. I reached all the heights that a footballer aspires and dreams of."

And finally, he talks about the two favorite characters in his life.

"I had the privilege of playing with Eyal Berkovich, in my opinion the greatest player in Israeli football. I played with my brother Roni, one of our greatest and most determined footballers of all time."

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