Goal machine Zahavi is as lethal as ever
AT the time, for both Israel and Eran Zahavi, it felt very much like the end. That sentiment applied not only to the nation’s slim hopes of reaching the World Cup in Russia but to the forward’s chances of ever again pulling on a jersey at international level.
The closing stages of a one-goal home defeat to Macedonia four years ago had seen the crowd turn on the embattled Israeli players.
Angered by what he and his team-mates had been subjected to, the final whistle saw Zahavi snap, rip off the captain’s armband and throw it into the turf.
A story of collective failure immediately became about one man and his inability to handle the flak when the going got tough.
Zahavi was suspended indefinitely by the Israeli FA on the spot — a punishment rendered almost irrelevant by the striker announcing his retirement from international football.
‘For 40 years, we haven’t made it to the World Cup,’ he said. ‘Forty without advancing. When I heard the booing, my heart exploded.
‘We’re not always going to win. Sometimes, we’re going to lose.’
Given the God-like status the PSV Eindhoven striker enjoys in the affections of the Israeli public ahead of tomorrow’s game at Hampden, it seems extraordinary to now consider the rather muted response to that fall-out.
There were certainly no demonstrations demanding his reinstatement in the streets of Jerusalem. Sports radio stations were hardly besieged with callers going in to bat for him.
The blunt fact is that Zahavi back then was not the player he is now in an Israeli jersey. He’d scored six goals in 39 games up to and including that game against Macedonia. In his subsequent 28 matches, he’s scored 25 times.
So what happened to trigger this remarkable renaissance in the now 34-year-old? In short, a change of direction at the Israeli FA brought a complete turnaround in their star man’s fortunes.
Moments after the 2018 World Cup campaign had ended in failure, veteran boss Elisha Levy was sacked with Austrian duo Andi Herzog and Willi Ruttensteiner brought in as manager and sports director, respectively.
Their first act was one of diplomacy by privately reaching out to Zahavi. A public apology was issued by the player on the understanding he’d be welcomed back into the fold and the new regime were true to their word.
Perhaps Zahavi saw a little of himself in Herzog. Something of a maverick in his days with Werder Bremen, he, too, had a reputation of being volatile but a player who delivered on the big occasion.
It was Herzog who’d broken Israeli hearts in 2001 by scoring in Tel Aviv to deny them the chance of reaching the 2002 World Cup and here he was, going against the wishes of many by inviting a disgraced player to come back in from the cold.
‘As the team coach, I have to do everything to have the best players on the squad,’ explained Herzog at the time. ‘The decision to return from retirement and rejoin the team is not easy for any player, but Eran is happy with the move.’
Ruttensteiner added: ‘I did not hide my and Andi’s ambition to see Eran wearing the national uniform again. He’s a great player and has a great personality. He is a player who leads and motivates.’
The result of this meeting of minds was spectacular. Zahavi fired a hat-trick against Austria and scored against the Czech Republic and Scotland — contributing to a jaw-dropping return of nine goals in 13 games at one point.
When Herzog left the post in June of last year, Ruttensteiner stepped forward. The impact on Zahavi has been zero. This calendar year alone he has scored seven goals in eight international matches.
The difference in Zahavi before and after that dark night against Macedonia is something of an obsession in his homeland.
The curiosity is that scoring goals has never been a problem for him at club level.
Having returned to Israeli football from Palermo with Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2013, he was the league’s top scorer for three consecutive seasons, netting 98 goals in 119 matches.
In December 2014, he broke the record for scoring in consecutive league matches by netting for the 18th game in a row.
Two years later, he smashed a six-decade-old record by scoring 35 goals in just 36 matches.
That astonishing return led to four years in China with Guangzhou R&F (where he scored 91 times in 106 games).
Those who have worked with him attest to an almost supernatural ability to be in the right place at the right time and his unerring knack of working the goalkeeper.
‘Zahavi is not the best footballer I have worked with,’ said his manager at Tel Aviv, Peter Bosz.
‘He’s not the fastest, not the biggest and not the strongest, but he’s a great scorer, a goal machine. His technique is insane.’
Will these talents belatedly light up the world stage? Zahavi turned 34 in July, meaning that chances to help Israel qualify for a first major tournament since 1970 are diminishing.
A loss at Hampden tomorrow might well signal the beginning of the long goodbye. And this time there would be no epilogue.