Eyal Berkovich Recalls Locker Room Tensions Over Politics

Former Israeli football player Eyal Berkovich recounted his negative experiences with political tensions during his career, particularly during his time at Manchester City. He stated that at the club, where at least ten players were Muslim, he was often the only Jewish player. Berkovich described these periods, especially during times of terrorist attacks, as the worst experience of his football career.

Berkovich explained that his coach at Manchester City, Kevin Keegan, was aligned with the Muslim players, and political accusations were frequent. He recalled entering the locker room and being blamed for terrorist attacks and incidents like the Park Hotel bombing, leading to frequent arguments. On the field, he sometimes faced issues related to his position, especially when a star player was benched and he was vying for that spot.

Berkovich also linked these sentiments to the animosity some Celtic fans, many of whom are Irish, have towards Israel. He mentioned having an Irish coach at Celtic who also harbored negative feelings towards Israel, concluding his remarks on the matter.