Hapoel Haifa announced on Tuesday that midfielder Sandro Altunashvili has left the club after both sides agreed to terminate his contract by mutual consent. The decision had been under consideration in recent weeks by the coaching staff, led by Haim Silvas, who felt keeping him was not the right move.
The club wanted to free up room for another foreign player in midfield, which was a key reason for the separation. Haifa now seeks a foreign holding midfielder, a number 6, and likely another foreign player in the number 10 role. Silvas and his assistants were unhappy that Altunashvili tended to play in the middle of the pitch in a way they did not want.
At the same time, Itay Zafrani is expected to sign soon on a season-long loan from Maccabi Tel Aviv. He is likely to be one of Hapoel Haifa’s next additions as the club continues to reshape its squad.