In recent years, Maccabi Haifa have done everything to get their hands on creative attacking players with precision and sophistication abilities that have created situations – and it has of course paid off for them. At the moment, the Greens are in first place in the Premier League and are running for the championship, but apart from the quality acquisition players who came to the team, Barak Bachar’s squad has another player who can be relished for his dedication. A young player, quite anonymous, who may get more and more minutes in the near future, and Maccabi Haifa does quite a bit to keep him with them.
The 17-year-old Nehorai Yifrach, an attacking player who grew up in the youth team and rose to the senior squad this season, is one of the most promising youngsters to grow up at the club in recent years – and he already wins minutes from Barak Bachar,
Yifrach went up to play against Urbani Kiryat Shmona from the bench and showed sparks from his talent, with a raise from the right wing on the right foot to the only player who was available on the field and another measured ball from the left foot on the other foot to another player. Although he entered the first minutes of the Premier League, it could be seen that he has an impressive technique with both feet, speed, getting out of place, and accuracy in the dedication and kicks he produces. This was his second appearance in the senior team, after his Cup debut against Hapoel Umm al-Fahm in the Cup, but he played with confidence.
Nehorai was born in Tiberias and in his youth grew up in the local group. This is a humble player who comes from a family that keeps tradition and quiet, so the parents barely see him play on Saturdays, but occasionally take a hotel room to get to his games anyway. He himself still travels by bus, from Tiberias to Haifa, because he has not yet had a driver’s license, but it is doubtful whether the passengers on the line know that he is a footballer with a promising future.
Three and a half years ago, he came to Haifa and made many people enjoy his quality. Last season, Yifrach was also promoted to the Bnei Lem youth team, where he played occasionally and recorded some flashes. The coach tried him in several roles – as an attacking midfielder on the right wing, as a player on the left wing and even in the position below the striker – and in all of them he managed to create situations and be dangerous.
Over time in Haifa they realized that his preferred position is in the right wing, where he manages to cut to the center and surprise with his left foot. This also happened, for example, at the start of the current season, when he came off the bench for the game against the youth team of Maccabi Tel Aviv after an injury. Yifrach received a ball in the middle of the field in an explosive attack, passed two defensive players and finished with a ball for connections from 20 meters, which made it 3: 0 over the great rival. In the stands sat the group’s president, Yaakov Shachar, who was delighted by this goal.
The player’s entourage says that Yaakov Shachar did a lot to make him feel good at Maccabi Haifa and to make him want to stay at the club. A few months ago, Yankele even came to Tiberias for dinner. Currently, his future in Haifa has not yet been promised that in May Nehorai Yifrach’s contract is due to end, when the club began negotiations with the player and his agents Avi Nemani and Roi Simoni, with the aim of keeping him in the team. Haifa does not want to miss another home player who could come to Europe, as has happened with strikers Sean Weissman and Suf Podgorano in recent years, and they will do everything to renew his contract.
Professionals in Israeli football have already signed Yifrach and some claim that if Maccabi Haifa knows how to keep him and nurture him, it will gain a great player for the future. “This is a footballer who should be the next thing. He is among the promising players in the new generation who can also go to Europe and there is no doubt that there is raw material here that for years has not been seen in the youth of Maccabi Haifa,” said a coach whose team faced the player. There is a promising future, there are also minutes of play – but only time will tell if the potential is realized and where it will play. This is the kind of player that Maccabi Haifa wants to grow and nurture instead of importing others from outside, but what will happen in the future? It mostly depends on him.
