Maccabi Tel Aviv Sports Director Jordi Cruyff held a press conference at Kiryat Shalom to discuss the status of the Club just after the end of the summer transfer window. Cruyff looked at the new additions to the squad, bringing Yossi Benayoun aboard, his own feelings about the side and Barak Itzhaki staying with the team:

Barak Itzhaki’s status over the last few days:

“Once Beitar was obliged to sell a player, we knew they would want to buy some players and we know how much Barak appreciates Beitar, but for us it was not an issue. There was no intention to let him go. We told him that and he knows that it’s a good feeling when the Club doesn’t want him to go. Everything was settled very quickly, we wanted him to stay and we told him so. We have a good squad and we will continue with the squad we have.”

About the foreigner rule:

“We still have one place. We had some difficulties along the way trying to sign players. There were lots of players that we had targeted and these things take time as other teams are interested in the same players we were as well, so we had a lot of work to do even when we signed Vidar Kjartansson. We had to deal with Orlando Sa and that took time as well. We had a deal almost done with a player that was never mentioned in the press but things fall through and there is a domino effect. We will have to wait until January.”

Priorities for the transfer window that just closed:

“Our priority was a striker and we had to find goals once Eran Zahavi left. We needed more goals from other players and signed players that have good goal scoring statistics. It looks at least on paper that we succeeded.

The defense:

“Our defense has many internationals ad others that have played abroad and if you look at the statistics we had the best defense in the league.”

Ambitions of ownership:

“The owner is very ambitious and more so than ever before. We had to try and bring the best players to Maccabi and we somewhat changed our strategy. Instead of bringing in Israeli players we looked at foreigners as the Israelis were all taken up.”

The past, present and future:

“We don’t look at other teams but we look at what Maccabi can do. There has been a lot of interest in Maccabi players and we will have to look ahead as we may not be able to keep all of them. We signed some for today and some for tomorrow. I don’t think we reacted to last season, which was good when we were close to everything but were left empty handed. It’s a difficult feeling, but if you asked me to sign a ten year contract on what we did last year I would.”

Evaluating his time with the Club:

“It’s always important to make evaluations and some times we all need a new and fresh challenge. It’s always good for everyone including football clubs as well. Four years have been a long process and there were ups and downs. Losing Eran didn’t play a factor in any of my personal decisions but of course I was sad he left as he was an important player. At some point I’ll need something new as will the club and that’s just normal. On a personal level it was a rough six months as well. I’m not working in the Cruyff Foundation because it has many capable people and I’ll be staying in the football realm for a long time.”

Shlomi Azulay:

“There was interest from other teams and he has a desire to play every week. We decided that Kiryat Shemona was a good fit but now we are just waiting for the final word. We filed everything on time so we will see.”

Adding Patrick Van Leeuwen to the staff:

“I think it’s important to have someone come in with fresh ideas and I wanted someone with exactly that and who could also challenge me with my thoughts. I may have an appreciation for some players that have been here for a long time and I don’t want to make decisions just based on loyalty. I wanted someone to see things with a new set of eyes. He is also working with the youth department but that is long term as we will only see results after 3-5 years. The owner is committee to owner to continue to move forward.”

Satisfaction:

“I’m never happy or satisfied with the job I’m doing and I’m always looking to improve. There are certainly some things that I could’ve done better and some things that I’m completely satisfied with. The owner, myself and the coach are all on the same page.”

On Carlos Garcia leaving the Club and the addition of Egor Filipenka:

“Carlos was a very successful player and had a lot of unjustified criticism and the players know how important he was for themselves but he said he needed something new in his career. He loved Israel and with his departure we tried to change our strategy and find local central defenders but I believe he is a valuable addition.”

Experience and Yossi Benayoun:

“I felt that last year we missed someone with his experience. We also have some expectations, but we don’t expect him to take the team on his shoulders. We just expect that everyone gives a full effort. He has scored a couple of crucial goals as well, but that’s just part of the equation. The players respect him and he has a very special aura surrounding him.”

Obtaining results:

“Results are done by hard work. I think we did a good job and we have 4-5 good players that can now really do the work and make an impact. Last year we had one player that shouldered the load and it’s very hard to ask one player to do the work each and every week.”