Maccabi Haifa Faces Heavy Costs on Three Out-of-Favor Foreign Players

Maccabi Haifa will begin official training on Tuesday, ahead of the 2026/27 season, which starts with Toto Cup matches. The club’s medical tests are scheduled for Monday. As Haifa prepares to strengthen the squad for next season, three players outside the team’s plans are becoming a major financial burden: Matias Nahuel, Xander Severina and Manuel "Show" Kapomana.

Nahuel spent the second half of last season on loan at Jagiellonia Bialystok in Poland, Severina was loaned to Casa Pia earlier this season and barely played, and Show is currently on loan at Kocaelispor in Turkey. Their combined annual salaries are about 1 million euros, while Haifa is trying to maximize its return on an investment of more than 5 million euros, including transfer fees. The club has already informed their agents that they are not part of the professional plans.

There is interest in Nahuel in Poland and in Show in Turkey, but no purchase offers have yet been made for either player.

Separately, winger Kenji Gora will also not be present for the start of training, but for positive reasons. He made his first minutes at the World Cup and helped Curacao earn its first-ever point in a 0-0 draw with Ecuador. Haifa players watched the match, congratulated him afterward, and view him as a very popular figure in the locker room.