The Beitar Jerusalem soccer team on Thursday appointed its former goalkeeper Yossi Mizrahi as coach, replacing Osvaldo Ardiles, who was fired earlier this week.

The 53-year-old Mizrahi, who guided Ashdod the past four seasons, returns to the club where he starred for 14 years. Mizrahi, who played a key role in Beitar's first league championship in 1987, also won four state cups with the club.

"[Beitar] is the club where I grew up and played for most of my career," Mizrahi said. "With this move I have come full circle, and I intend to guide this club to the championship, but there is still plenty of work to be done."

	Advertisement

Ardiles coached Beitar only since August, putting together a record of three victories, a draw and a defeat in league play. He was fired Monday after increased pressure following Beitar's 3-1 defeat to Netanya in the Premier League on Saturday.

This will be Mizrahi's third stint as Beitar's coach, following brief spells in the 1993-4 season and 2001-2.

Despite statements from senior Beitar officials, including chairman Vladimir Shklar, that Ardiles' standing was not in danger, on Wednesday it transpired that the decision to replace the Argentine, or at least appoint a senior Israeli coach to work alongside him, was taken less than 24 hours after the club's Saturday defeat.

Several names came up, including Haifa's Roni Levy and Israel U-21 coach Guy Levi, but in the end, the fact that Mizrahi was a former Beitar player and coach tilted the balance in his favor.

Execution of the layoff was delayed when Beitar beat Hapoel Kfar Sava in the Toto Cup midweek, but Ardiles' reprieve was short lived.

Shklar rang Ardiles on Wednesday and told him he doubted his ability to win the championship alone - Beitar is level top of the standings with three wins, a draw and a defeat - and demanded that he work alongside an Israeli coach. Ardiles asked for time to consider the ultimatum, but within minutes he called back to tender his resignation.

Shklar immediately contacted Ashdod to finalize the details of his departure. As well as financial compensations, Ashdod is demanding the transfer of players from Beitar.

Mizrahi agreed to the move on condition that he be able to make changes to the squad during the January transfer window. Sources close to Mizrahi said that of Beitar's foreign players, he planned to leave only Ghana international Derek Boateng - Fabrice Fernandez, Jeano Pinto, Miroslav Mirosevic and Christian Fabiani are all expected to leave.

Mizrahi is also reported to be planning to appoint Hapoel Ashkelon coach Michel Dayan as his assistant, while Beitar scout Dudu Dahan could be headed out and French fitness coach Tiberius Darau headed back to Jerusalem.

Yossi Mizrahi starred for Beitar, appearing as first team goalkeeper for the club for 13 years between 1974 and 1987. He worked as assistant coach at Beitar under Ematzia Levkovic and in 1994, four games into the season, when Levkovic was fired, he was appointed head coach. Mizrahi led Beitar to a fifth-place finish, but his contract was not renewed and he later coached with Hapoel Jerusalem, Maccabi Petah Tikva and Ashdod, as well as working as assistant coach to Avraham Grant in Israel's 2004 European Championship qualifying campaign.

No comment was available from Ardiles, but his assistant, Emilio Camisso, launched a fierce attack on the club. "I don't know anywhere in the world where the management would go behind the coach's back in such a brutal fashion. It's a disgrace," Camisso said.