Maccabi Netanya Allocates €250,000 Salary Budget to Sign Senior Defender

Maccabi Netanya is actively working to strengthen its defense ahead of the new season, with club owner Ross Kastin allocating a €250,000 salary budget for signing a senior central defender. This move follows defensive weaknesses exposed in their recent 3-3 draw against Ironi Tiberias. The team is preparing for another friendly match against Hapoel Haifa on Tuesday, where coach Ronny Levy expects defensive improvements.

In parallel, the club is negotiating with Portuguese goalkeeper Samu Silva, who is expected to decide within 24 hours whether to join Maccabi Netanya. Over the weekend, Silva toured Tel Aviv with the club's vice president Kobi Lavi and his agent, and they met with player Matheus Dabo. Today, Silva and his agent will visit the training complex and stadium, hoping for a positive decision. To entice Silva, the club has promised him an apartment near the sea.

These efforts reflect Maccabi Netanya's focus on shoring up its defensive line after a challenging previous season, which saw one of the league's poorest defensive records even before coach Ronny Levy replaced Yossi Abuksis.