Writing this letter to you, with tears in my eyes, is not easy for me. But there is no other way for me to express to you what I feel in my heart.
Now that the 2012/13 season is over, I can easily say that this has been one of the most satisfying experiences of my sporting career. After winning the league and securing qualification for the Champions League qualifying rounds, I have decided to step down as head coach of the best football team in Israel.
Sometimes personal circumstances must take priority over professional considerations and as such I feel obliged to take this rather sudden decision. Nonetheless I feel this is the right moment for the club for me to step down, so as not to delay the preparations for next season and any decisions regarding players and the coaching staff.
At the moment, I do not know if I will be coaching any team next season. I realise this decision comes as a surprise to all of you, so please permit me to apologise in advance.
I can assure all of you that my original intention was not to leave Maccabi, especially after winning the title and building a team for which I have the highest expectations in the weeks and months to come.
I am absolutely certain that Maccabi Tel Aviv will qualify for the Champions League groups stage and will retain the league title next season. I am very proud to have initiated this project and hope the team and the club will continue along this successful path.
It has been a delight to be a part of this success. I arrived in Tel Aviv with a dream of working hard and driving the club to the stature they so richly deserve. Now I am leaving after having achieved some of my objectives, not only as a professional, but also as a person. After 10 years I have at last managed to turn a dream into reality.
Although I have only been here for one season, I would like to thank the people of Israel who welcomed me from the very beginning and who treated me with the greatest possible kindness and made my stay here a most perfect experience.
I would like to thank everyone who made my time here at Maccabi possible, in particular (sports director) Jordi (Cruyff) who showed faith in me as a friend. Appointing a lifelong friend as a coach is a genuine risk and I am so happy not to have let him down.
I would also like to thank (owner) Mitch (Goldhar) and (representative) Jack (Angelides), who put their trust in me before they even got to know me, without my even having had any experience as a professional head coach. I also extend my gratitude to the Maccabi staff and the club's employees who have come to be my family. They supported me as head coach and have turned this project into a reality.
I would like to thank the players for gifting me this experience and for allowing me to grow as a coach. The experience of living with them and working with them has been nothing short of spectacular.
I also want to thank the fans who supported me from the very start. It was their warmth and affection, in both good times and bad, that provided me with the most unforgettable moments. Words cannot possibly express all the joy they made me feel. It is in no small part because of these splendid and utterly devoted fans that Maccabi Tel Aviv have become the enormous club they are today.
Finally, I would like to thank everyone who went out of their way to stand by me and make things so easy and pleasurable for me, with particular thanks to Shlomi. I am today a better coach and a better person thanks to all of you.
I will take with me all the wonderful experiences each and every one of you has shared with me, as well as the splendid moments we experienced and shared together.
I feel certain that this great club will enjoy many good years in future and I truly hope to return one day, whenever Maccabi Tel Aviv feel they will need me.
I say good-bye to all of you now, but never forget what I said at the Championship celebrations at Rabin Square: Deep down in my heart I feel, and will always feel, the glow of Maccabi yellow.
Go Maccabi!
Oscar Garcia
