The Israel National Team is just three wins away from making history at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup.While it’s still quite a ways away for the blue-and-white to take home an international soccer title, the fact that Ofir Haim’s squad is in a position to do so is quite an accomplishment in itself.
After defeating Asian champions Uzbekistan 1-0 in the Round of 16 thanks to Anan Khalaili’s goal deep into second-half stoppage time late on Tuesday night Argentina time, Israel is off to the quarterfinals on Saturday evening, where it will play the winner of the Brazil-Tunisia game, which finished after press time on Wednesday night.
While there is no question that the typical Israeli had never even given a thought to this U-20 tournament prior to the sensational play that the young Israelis have been providing, everyone is now tuning in with pride to see just how far this team can go.
Haim’s squad has done what many politicians across the Holy Land have never been able to do – unite all facets and faces of the people who live, work and breathe in and around the country all the way up to Nahariya and Kiryat Shmona, to Sakhnin, Jerusalem and all the way down to Eilat.
But it’s not just the people of Israel who are “shepping naches.” It’s also the Argentinian Jews, who have accompanied the team around the vast South American country after FIFA stripped Indonesia of the competition for not allowing Israel to enter, as well as Jews around the globe and others who are learning very quickly that Israeli soccer can provide thrills.
And that is what everyone saw on Tuesday night in Mendoza and very early in the morning on Wednesday in Israel.Israel dominated Uzbekistan throughout the contest, but the Asian champs would not concede as chance after chance was created by Haim’s team, especially in the second half. As time wound down into injury time, the blue-and-white kept pushing for a winner to avoid having to go to the 30-minute extra-time period, and then perhaps penalty kicks, to determine the winner.
That was not going to be the case when captain Ilay Madmon lined up to take a free kick in the 97th minute. The Beersheba product sent the ball directly into the box and Khalaili stabbed the ball past the Uzbek keeper to send the Israeli squad and its supporters throughout the stadium into euphoria.
The Maccabi Haifa winger has not been on the tips of the tongues of many who have been involved with the team, but Khalaili was in the right place at the right time and did what he was trained to do – score.How many times have Israeli national teams not been able to find the back of the net in crunch time? How many times has an opportunity that could win the game go by the wayside and how many times has Israel been so close yet so far?
The Sakhnin native put that all to rest with a goal that will go down in the annals of Israeli soccer history.Ironically, Khalaili had entered the game in the 55th minute, coming on for the previous game’s hero, Omer Senior, who scored the decisive goal against Japan to send Israel into the Round of 16.
Khalaili’s father had once been a goalkeeper in the lower leagues of the Israeli soccer pyramid and helped train his son to put him in the position where he scored five goals this past season with Haifa’s youth team while also having been in the starting lineup for the National Team’s three games last November.
There had been some interest from well-known European clubs for the 18-year-old’s services, and that ratcheted up following the game when immediate reports came out that Polish outfit Legia Warsaw and Austrian side Rapid Wien were keen on having Khalaili as part of their squads.
However, the striker, who has committed to Maccabi Haifa through 2026, perhaps will have a chance to crack the first-team lineup with his youth coach Messay Dego now taking over the reins for the big northern club.
With the final whistle blown, the celebrations kicked off as fans flew Israeli flags in almost every inch of the stadium, the players leapt on one another and ran around the track in pure unadulterated joy.
There were no politics to be found between Arab and Jew. Khalaili with his goal had united people and also a nation, which has been thirsting for someone to do just that.
“This is a very exciting moment and I have goosebumps all over my body,” a boisterous Khalaili said. “I want to thank the entire nation of Israel who are supporting us and who were up until past 2 a.m. I just knew that this was going to be my day, I had a good feeling, I just knew it. We are winners, a group of men and I am so proud of everyone here.”Haim also spoke about the victory.
“I set a goal for our team and I am so proud of the guys, this was a very tough game. This was like a cup final, and a game like that is very dangerous. We didn’t play well enough and intelligently enough, but we showed a tremendous amount of character, toughness all the way to the final seconds. We believed that we could win, we were the better team and we deserved to be victorious.
“Everything in life is difficult,” continued the bench boss. “But that is what makes it so much sweeter. I hoped that the journey would be a bit easier, but it looks like this is what God’s plan was for me. We have an incredible national team and we are very united, which is what I believe wholeheartedly. We now have to make sure that we don’t think that we aren’t the underdog and stay modest.”
Congratulations poured in from every corner of the world, whether it was the official FIFA website, Colombian television or local Argentinian media.
Israeli soccer has made its mark
There were no politics to be found between Arab and Jew. Khalaili with his goal had united people and also a nation, which has been thirsting for someone to do just that.
“This is a very exciting moment and I have goosebumps all over my body,” a boisterous Khalaili said. “I want to thank the entire nation of Israel who are supporting us and who were up until past 2 a.m. I just knew that this was going to be my day, I had a good feeling, I just knew it. We are winners, a group of men and I am so proud of everyone here.”Haim also spoke about the victory.
“I set a goal for our team and I am so proud of the guys, this was a very tough game. This was like a cup final, and a game like that is very dangerous. We didn’t play well enough and intelligently enough, but we showed a tremendous amount of character, toughness all the way to the final seconds. We believed that we could win, we were the better team and we deserved to be victorious.
“Everything in life is difficult,” continued the bench boss. “But that is what makes it so much sweeter. I hoped that the journey would be a bit easier, but it looks like this is what God’s plan was for me. We have an incredible national team and we are very united, which is what I believe wholeheartedly. We now have to make sure that we don’t think that we aren’t the underdog and stay modest.”
Congratulations poured in from every corner of the world, whether it was the official FIFA website, Colombian television or local Argentinian media.