Israeli Liga Bet Club Bnei Eilat Negotiates With Foreign Coach Andy Ribaj

Bnei Eilat, a football club competing in Israel's Liga Bet (fourth tier), is in talks to appoint a foreign coach for the first time in the league's history. The club's legal advisor, Amir Cohen, traveled to Albania on behalf of Kobi Refua, Bnei Eilat's new professional manager, to negotiate with Andy Ribaj, a former player in the Albanian top division and a past player for Maccabi Kiryat Gat in Israel's second division. Ribaj, who played in Albania's first league from 2008 to 2023 and scored two goals in 29 matches for Kiryat Gat, is currently coaching and maintains close ties with Israeli contacts who often visit him.

A source involved with Bnei Eilat described the effort as ambitious, acknowledging the challenge of recruiting a coach of Ribaj's caliber to a fourth-tier Israeli club. Cohen confirmed the negotiations but noted that an agreement is still distant. If Ribaj does not join, the club plans to appoint local coach Shabtai Tesel, as talks with another candidate, Nimrod Kostika, have stalled over contract terms.

Ribaj's coaching experience includes nine matches managing Flamurtari in Albania's top league, where his team won three games, drew three, and was relegated at season's end despite a squad valued at approximately 3 million euros. Bnei Eilat aims to elevate its project with a prestigious and ambitious approach, starting with the coaching position.