Hapoel Be'er Sheva Disappointed by Performance Despite Victory, Coach Plans Deep Rotation

Hapoel Be'er Sheva secured a 2-0 victory over Tiberias on Saturday in Noah Galil, but coach Ran Kozuch expressed dissatisfaction with his team's performance. Despite the win, the team struggled to create attacking chances and had a poor 20-minute defensive stretch at the end of the match. Kozuch is planning significant squad rotation for the upcoming games due to a demanding schedule.

With all players now fit for the first time this season, several, including Adrian Gorsisa, Ofir Davidzada, Jonas Malada, and Yoni Stoyanov, were not included in the squad for the recent match. Hapoel Be'er Sheva faces eight games in less than a month before the next international break, necessitating the use of the entire squad. Players like Eliel Peretz and Niv Yehoshua, who represented their national teams during the break, did not start Saturday's game but are expected to feature in the Europa League match against AZ Alkmaar on Thursday. Left-back Pedro Amador was substituted at halftime due to a muscle issue, and his fitness for the next game will be assessed.

Despite the lackluster performance, the club is pleased that two new foreign signings, Forson Amankwah and Joao Victor, scored their first goals for the team. Amankwah also provided an assist for Victor's goal. The club denied reports that captain Miguel Vítor refused to play for the national team, with Kozuch stating that Vítor was not called up. Meanwhile, former national team captain Eli Dasa, currently without a club, has received an offer from Hapoel Be'er Sheva, which he is considering as it is his only offer from a major Israeli club. Kozuch acknowledged that Dasa's potential arrival could impact Guy Mizrahi's playing time but expressed confidence that new signings push existing players to improve.

Goalkeeper Ofir Marciano commented on the Dutch authorities' decision to ban Hapoel Be'er Sheva fans from attending the upcoming match against AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands, despite many having already booked travel. Marciano called the situation "very sad" and emphasized the importance of the fans to the club. While he stated the ban would not affect the players' motivation, he expressed hope that the team could still bring joy to fans across Israel by winning the match.