Shaun Goldberg speaks after the landing of the Israeli national team/Photo: Avi Rokah Video editor: Shiran Golan
October 7th changed world order in all fields, and the effect was felt even in the Israeli national team.
Shino Zoertz understood the magnitude of the hour and worked vigorously to return Eran Zahavi to the squad.
He organized a meeting between Yossi Banyon and Zebi Yosher Hadorim (at least on paper) after which a joint statement was issued by the parties.
On the outside, everything looked rosy, but in practice the relations between the professional team and Zabee not only did not improve - but only worsened after he returned to the national team.
Already in Zahavi's first training sessions with the national team ahead of the meeting with Romania in the Euro qualifiers, players said: "The atmosphere between the parties is not good. It's as if they were forced to accept each other, and it also creates an unpleasant atmosphere for the players. Everyone feels it."
After the game against Romania in November in which Zahavi scored but the team was defeated and lost the chance to advance to the Euros, the allegations in the team were that he destroys the structure and criticizes the team wherever possible.
Zahavi, for his part, denied at least some of the things and claimed to those around him that while he was not in the team, there was someone who poisoned others against him and created great antagonism towards him.
He was convinced that there were those who would look for the moment or the mistake he would make to kick him out of the team.
were almost completely disconnected.
Zahavi next to Alon Hazan/Barney Ardov
This continues even towards the last games.
Those around Zahavi explain that when he was in a bad time, messages were sent to him that he would not be invited to the team for the game against Iceland and even if he was included in the squad in the end, he probably would not start.
It was a kind of message that should have made him give up the pleasure, but then Zahavi started to get back in shape in a Maccabi Tel Aviv uniform.
"As soon as Eran returned to scoring in bunches, Benion and Hazan had no choice but to summon him," said the team.
In the current gathering, the tension between the parties has already reached its peak.
Zahavi hardly exchanged a word with Banyon and Cantor.
The team told the heads of the association that they feel that "he is not with them", and on the other hand the striker felt that he was part of the squad only because of public pressure, and sounded hurt.
A senior player in the team said even before the game with Iceland: "There is nothing to be done, when Zahabi is in the team he overshadows everyone, for better or for worse. There are also many who are jealous of him, so it is easy for them to be attracted to the antipathy towards him. Right now it is an unhealthy situation, because everyone knows something is going on It's bad between the team and Eran, that it could explode at any moment. This kind of tension against a player of his status has an effect, everyone feels it, the players are not lagging behind."
The tensions regarding the gold also affected the relationship between Shino Zoertz and Yossi Benyon all the way.
Benyon has been claiming for some time to the senior officials of the association that Zahavi is harming the structure and atmosphere in the national team and explained that players have contacted him several times regarding his conduct.
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"If Zahavi had known that he would return to such an atmosphere, he would have given up the pleasure."
Next to the construction, in more optimistic days/courtesy of the photographed
Before the game against Iceland, there was a debate as to whether to start with Zahavi in the lineup, but the very fact that the idea came up at all caused the senior officials in the association to send a message to the team that this would not be true.
The fear was that Zahavi's benching would be categorized as an attempt to hurt the player at the expense of the national team, so the possibility was dropped from the episode.
Shino Zoertz wanted to return Zahavi to the national team from a good place and out of an aspiration for unity, but what was done before October 7th could not be undone.
The relations between the parties were extremely bad, and the mud that was thrown until October 7 was constantly felt in the air.
Not only was it impossible to go back, but even the opposite: when Zahavi was around, the animosity between the parties grew, as did the reluctance of the professional staff to see him in the squad.
If Banyon had continued in the national team, Zahabi would probably have retired - or in any case not been invited.
Those around Zahavi concluded: "If he had known that he would return to such an atmosphere, he would have given up the pleasure. Even in the previous event, it was beyond the matter of the room. He understood that he was not wanted."
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Israel national football team
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