Hapoel Be'er Sheva Coach Slams Referees for Disrespect

Hapoel Be'er Sheva secured a crucial 2-0 away victory against Hapoel Petah Tikva on Sunday, regaining confidence after two league matches without a win. The team is preparing for a busy week, which includes their first Europa League fixture against Dinamo Zagreb in Bucharest on Wednesday, followed by a home league game against Ironi Kiryat Shmona on Saturday. Coach Ran Kozuch made five changes to the lineup, fielding players who had seen limited action recently, such as Yoni Stoyanov and Itay Hazut, and giving starts to Idan Nachmias, Forson Amankwah, and Joao Victor. Mo­hamed Abu Rumi scored the opening goal, and substitute Hamodi Kanaan, on whom the club has high hopes, added the second. The team also received a boost from the performance of central defender Jibril Dope, who had faced criticism from fans but earned cheers at the end of the match. Midfielder Niv Yehoshua, a summer signing, also received praise for his leadership in the midfield, compensating for the absence of Eliel Peretz and Lucas Ventura. Yehoshua expressed his commitment to improving and acknowledged the pain of their Champions League qualifying exit, but emphasized the need to focus on their current opportunities.

Following the match, Kozuch, who received a yellow card for arguing with officials, voiced strong criticism regarding the treatment of coaches by referees in the league. He contrasted the perceived lack of respect from Israeli referees with his experiences in European competitions, stating, "The disrespect of the officiating crews towards coaches is beyond any limit." Kozuch elaborated that in European games, despite potential errors, he never felt the officiating crews disrespected coaches, unlike in Israel. He argued that the way Israeli referees communicate and behave is unacceptable and needs to change, noting that coaches in other Israeli teams also get upset but receive explanations rather than yellow cards.