A miracle in Argentina: A dramatic turnaround lifted the Israeli national team to the eighth of the World Cup finals, after a 1-2 victory over Japan. Israel won despite playing ten players in the last half hour, after falling behind, but still showed a lot of character, resilience and talent. The Japanese took the lead just before the break, Israel lost Ran Benjamin who was sent off with two yellows 7 minutes from the moment he entered (68), but Nawi equalized with a shot (77) and Senior (92) turned in at the end of a wonderful attack, after an assist with Turgeman's heel. In the final eight, Israel will play against Uzbekistan.
Israel's youth team celebrates (Photo by Getty Images, ANDRES LARROVERE/AFP)
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Ofir Haim's team continues to provide moments of pride, and the coach looks excited at the end. "The entire State of Israel, we love you, we did it for you, I dedicate it to you," he said, "It's a heroic victory, we won with ten players a great team. With a lot of character, stamina, they burned the grass. Now the sky is the limit for us, we are not afraid of any team. It's great history."
Dor Turgman: "What won? The heart and soul of every single player here. We believed from the beginning, even after the red. At the break we said it sucked to get the goal in that minute, but we believed after it and I'm glad it went. Thank you so much for staying up for us, glad we gave you back, now we have to move forward."
Israel's youth team celebrates with coach Ofir Haim (Photo by Getty Images, ANDRES LARROVERE/AFP)
Bonnie Ginzburg, technical director of the association's young teams, said at the end: "They are still trying to digest what happened here. I'm so excited, in the first half we weren't in the game enough. After the expulsion, I don't think there was a single person who believed it was possible to return. I'm especially happy for the actors, who got the opportunity to play on such a special stage, there's a group here that made a historic achievement. There couldn't have been a harder draw than this.
"We have hope for the future and that's why I came. We believe in the Israeli footballer, who needs to invest more at the base of the pyramid, not be afraid of the word process. Patience. The task for us is to reach the 2030 World Cup and become permanent residents of international tournaments. For that, you need 15-20 players in the top leagues in Europe. Today we have one. These kids who play here have played close to 40 international games, it's amazing and it gives them the understanding of what is required of them when they reach the first team. Benayoun and Hazan will accept them when nothing surprises them."
Israel's youth team celebrates (Photo by Getty Images, ANDRES LARROVERE/AFP)
Shino Zuaretz, Chairman of the Israel Football Association: "Sometimes words run out in the face of historic moments of great heart, talent and belief that anything is possible until the last moment. Immense pride for the professional and logistical staff, the players, blue and white football and the State of Israel. The runners-up of the European Championship, our Israeli team, recorded another great achievement. Bonnie, Ofir and our wonder group have recorded a glorious chapter in the history of Israeli football and will be a central part of its future. Great happiness and even greater joy tonight."
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- Israeli football
- Israeli national teams
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- Youth team
- Ofir Haim