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Soccer / From sidelined to the sidelines By Tomer Ratman Tags: Israel News The appointment of Rami Levy this week to be Maccabi Herzliya's third coach this season surprised no small amount of people in Israeli soccer. Over the last five years, save for a pair of brief stints, the local soccer scene has gotten used to life without Levy. Where did you disappear to for so long? Levy: "It's a good question, which I haven't thought about. A year-and-a-half ago I coached Bnei Lod after Yaakov Hillel resigned, and the year before I coached Ahi Nazereth during the last nine games. Before that I was in a kind of cool-off period for a number of reasons. It wasn't planned. I didn't have any concrete offers. It just worked out that way. Perhaps I wasn't pushy enough, but I really don't want to go into it." Advertisement You know that in this era whoever isn't pushy ends up without a team. "I have no complaints. I never opposed this trend. As a man of faith, I believe that everything comes from heaven. It's probably what was supposed to happen. I don't think it's fair to say this one has connections and that one doesn't. Everyone would want connections to coach. Personally, I was never the one to glad hand in cafes. I coached a lot of years in the Premier League, and it was always strictly on a professional basis. Whoever wanted me to coach for him hired me. No one arranged anything for me." You are the team's third coach this season. What made you come back? "[Team chairman] Ariel Sheiman did. My relationship with him started during the time we worked together at Bnei Yehuda. It was a five-year period. I am aware of what people think about him, but it's his team and his right to do what he understands. He offered for me to come and contribute my knowledge and experience, and after some thought I took the challenge." Levy vows to give players discipline How do you expect to divide up responsibilities in practice? "Forget about those things. I don't deal with responsibilities. He asked me to contribute to the team, and I'll do whatever is necessary. Let's not delude ourselves that Sheiman has no aspirations to coach. Ariel is an honest man. If he doesn't want someone he'll say it straight to his face. That beats smiling to your face and talking behind your back." "He got stuck in a situation where he was without a coach for two games, and he successfully took the challenge upon himself. But he knows this can't last, and he needs to manage other matters of business. He doesn't want to sit in the stands and yell at the coach to make substitutions, even though he is the kind who cares a lot and gets very involved. He works from the heart and also takes things to heart. He told me he wants a coach who is willing to accept his opinion because he is running the business." But isn't the job of the coach to coach and the owner to sit in the stands? "I don't understand why people raise an eyebrow when an owner says he is a professional and will be involved in bringing in players. Of course everything is done in full partnership with the coach. Maybe people interpret this as being egocentric or a one-man show. But Ariel is a team player who doesn't do anything without consulting others. It's his right to veto things that don't seem right to him because it's his money, not yours or mine. I get that. I'm not going to steal his show, and vice-versa." There were several potential coaches for this team. What is the added value you bring? "Beyond the professional respect and faith he put in me, he is letting me handle the issue of promoting young players. At Bnei Yehuda players like Alon Mizrahi, Yossi Madar, Haim Revivo all flowered under me, and Yossi Abuksis wanted to quit soccer, but I brought him back from the U.S. I have an approach to handling young players, and the average age at Herzliya is very young." Soccer is 'no magic trick' You are familiar with the National league (second division). Do you have ideas where your predecessors failed? "Soccer isn't a magic trick. To talk about a certain method or formula is pretentious. I'm no magician. A soccer coach sometimes brings the best methods but lacks the proper players, or the opposite is true. I prefer to talk less and do more. My advantage is that Ariel is involved and has already given me information about the team. I intend to work together with everybody. It's not my private business." In recent years Herzliya has encountered many problems between management and its coaches, leading to its relegation last season. Though Herzliya has spent many seasons in the Premier League it has relatively few supporters and been subsidized heavily by the town hall. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Israelis targeted abroad Gunman opens fire on Israelis working at shopping mall in Denmark. Iran silences dissent Newspaper forcibly shut down after article blaming Hamas for Gaza violence.

Read & React Gideon Levy: Are Israel's pilots callous and blind to Gaza's suffering? Responses: 296 Iran Jews stage pro-Palestinian rally near UN offices in Tehran Responses: 118 Israel decides to push on with Gaza op until 'all goals reached' Responses: 65 Gaza rocket strikes school in Be'er Sheva Responses: 86 ANALYSIS / Hamas winning battle of public opinion in Arab world Responses: 45 ANALYSIS / Rivalry among Israel's leaders at root of row on Gaza cease-fire Responses: 28 More Headlines 23:32 IAF bombs Gaza mosque being used as weapons storehouse 23:51 Haniyeh: Palestinian victory in Gaza is near 23:18 Israel decides to push on with Gaza op until 'all goals reached' 13:27 Get up to the minute coverage of the warfare in Gaza directly to your email 23:16 4 rockets hit south as 'special situation' status extended to 40 kilometers from Gaza border 00:26 U.S. counterterror expert: Hamas has adopted Hezbollah-like tactics in Gaza 20:39 Gunman opens fire on Israelis working at mall in Denmark 21:05 WATCH: YouTube pulls some IDF videos showing Gaza assault 19:51 IN PICTURES / Israel battles Hamas in Gaza: Day five 18:56 GIDEON LEVY / The IAF, bullies of the clear blue skies 19:15 White House: Hamas must cease rocket fire as first step to truce 22:34 Livni: We will not allow thugs to rule the Middle East 18:26 Report: Iranian newspaper closed over article sympathetic to Israel 19:23 JEWISH WORLD / Pro-Israel camp would be wise to heed Muslim cries for peace 12:05 ANALYSIS / Rivalry among Israel's leaders at root of row on Gaza cease-fire 16:55 Protests abound at T.A. and Haifa Universities; Be'er Sheva students flee Gaza rockets in droves 19:14 Shin Bet: Hamas has been hit by IAF's Gaza offensive like never before 21:02 Turkey, Syria call on Islamic nations to pressure Israel to end Gaza offensive 09:26 ANALYSIS / Hamas racks up its first diplomatic victory in Gaza campaign Previous Editions Select Day 31 dec 30 dec 29 dec 28 dec 26 dec 25 dec 24 dec 23 dec 22 dec 21 dec 19 dec 18 dec

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