Landesberg sets his Euro vision
FOOTBALL ANDREW Landesberg insists he has unfinished business after being appointed manager of Maccabi GB’s Open Football team for next year’s European Maccabi Games in Budapest.
Landesberg will lead a management set-up featuring Nathan Kosky as his assistant and coach Darren Yarlett.
MGB earned silver medals at last summer’s Maccabiah Games in Israel but Landesberg admits the chance to go one better in Hungary is spurring him on.
“As I was leaving the field of play last summer after being beaten in the final, I felt very proud of what we had all achieved but knew it was just the start of a new journey,” he said, reflecting on the 3-0 final defeat against the USA. “I went for gold and got silver. I knew I would be coming back.”
Landesberg has already triumphed on the European stage — leading MGB to futsal gold, and the first-team manager at London Lions is confident of giving his players “an even better experience” this time.
“There is no doubt there will be some familiar faces, but also some new ones as we aim to deliver another magical journey in a city that has seen some historic, but traumatic times for the Jews of Hungary,” he said.
Kosky, the under-21 manager at Lions, is relishing working alongside Landesberg again. He said: “Reaching the last Maccabiah final has given us both the belief that we can aim for two gold medals in the next three years. This is a big challenge but we feel we have the players, know-how and formula that can help us achieve it.
“As with Maccabiah Games, the way the group binds together on and off the pitch will be absolutely critical. We are looking for the right characters and mind-set from the start. We will combine some exciting young talent with slightly more experienced players.
“We will deliver the very best preparation possible. From a professional head coach, to the rest of the backroom team that will again aim to give the players the edge over the other countries.”
Yarlett has been a key figure in the development of players at Lions and he expressed “excitement” at being back in the fold, having been part of the coaching set up at the 2013 Maccabiah.
He said: “Our expectations on the pitch will be to win, but also experience the beautiful city of Budapest and the Jewish history it has to offer.”
Landesberg challenged players to put themselves in contention: “We want to create a squad who want to and can deliver their dreams.”