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| playername = Yossi Benayoun
| playername = Yossi Benayoun
| image = [[Image:Benayoun Signing.jpg|250px]]
| image = [[Image:Benayoun Signing.jpg|250px]]
| fullname = Yossi Shai Benayoun
| fullname = Yosef Shai Benayoun
| dateofbirth = {{birth date and age|1980|5|5|29}}
| dateofbirth = {{birth date and age|1980|5|5|29}}
| cityofbirth = [[Dimona]]
| cityofbirth = [[Dimona]]
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| ntupdate = 12:00, 12 February 2009 (UTC)
| ntupdate = 12:00, 12 February 2009 (UTC)
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'''Yossi Shai Benayoun''' ({{lang-he|'''יוסף שי בניון'''}}; born 5 May 1980 in [[Dimona]], [[Israel]]), more commonly known as Yossi Benayoun ({{lang-he|'''יוסי בניון'''}}), is an [[Israel]]i [[Association football|football]] player currently playing for [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] in the English [[Premier League]]. Benayoun plays as an attacking [[midfielder]], occupying the space just behind the striker. In Israel he is nicknamed "The Diamond"<ref name=uefa>{{cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/magazine/news/kind=512/newsid=319108.html |title=Benayoun the kid for Hammers |work=Article on uefa.com|date=[[July 22]], [[2005]]|accessdate=July 11|accessyear=2007}}</ref>, and he is the captain of the [[Israel national football team|Israeli national football team]].
'''Yosef Shai Benayoun''' ({{lang-he|'''יוסף שי בניון'''}}; born 5 May 1980 in [[Dimona]], [[Israel]]), more commonly known as Yossi Benayoun ({{lang-he|'''יוסי בניון'''}}), is an [[Israel]]i [[Association football|football]] player currently playing for [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] in the English [[Premier League]]. Benayoun plays as an attacking [[midfielder]], occupying the space just behind the striker. In Israel he is nicknamed "The Diamond"<ref name=uefa>{{cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/magazine/news/kind=512/newsid=319108.html |title=Benayoun the kid for Hammers |work=Article on uefa.com|date=[[July 22]], [[2005]]|accessdate=July 11|accessyear=2007}}</ref>, and he is the captain of the [[Israel national football team|Israeli national football team]].


== Early years ==
== Early years ==

Revision as of 14:36, 8 July 2009

Yossi Benayoun
Personal information
Full name Yosef Shai Benayoun
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1]
Position(s) Attacking midfielder / Winger
Team information
Current team
 Liverpool
Number 15
Youth career
Hapoel Be'er Sheva
Ajax
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–1998 Hapoel Be'er Sheva
1998–2002 Maccabi Haifa
2002–2005 Racing de Santander
2005–2007 West Ham United
2007– Liverpool
International career‡
1998–2001 Israel U21
1998– Israel
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:19, 21 April 2009 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 12:00, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

Yosef Shai Benayoun (Hebrew: יוסף שי בניון; born 5 May 1980 in Dimona, Israel), more commonly known as Yossi Benayoun (Hebrew: יוסי בניון), is an Israeli football player currently playing for Liverpool in the English Premier League. Benayoun plays as an attacking midfielder, occupying the space just behind the striker. In Israel he is nicknamed "The Diamond"[2], and he is the captain of the Israeli national football team.

Early years

Jason Burt writing for The Independent described Benayoun's youth years: "aged nine and he was spotted as a footballing talent. Aged 11 and the talent was labelled a genius. By 13 his face appeared on the front of magazines in Israel."[3] Benayoun started his career aged 9 with Hapoel Be'er Sheva. To attend training he regularly hitchhiked the 60 km roundtrip with his father.[2] After making a name for himself, he was scouted by Ajax Amsterdam. His shirt number while playing for Ajax was 14.[citation needed] They invited the 15 year old Benayoun and his family to the Netherlands. By his 16th birthday, he was the Ajax youth team's highest scorer and best player, and Ajax duly offered Benayoun a four-year professional contract.[3] However, Benayoun and his family hadn't settled very well in Amsterdam, and so he turned his back on the contract and returned to Israel after just eight months.[3] In Israel he was criticized for letting go of a golden opportunity.[citation needed]

Club career

Hapoel Be'er Sheva

At the age of 17, he was promoted to the Hapoel Be'er Sheva senior team for the Liga Leumit 1997-98, but could not prevent the club from being relegated to Israel's second division. In the last match of the season against Maccabi Haifa, Benayoun got a penalty kick in the 90th minute. Haifa's goalkeeper, Nir Davidovich saved the shot but Benayoun scored the rebound. However, their relegation rival had won their match, meaning that his team would be relegated nonetheless.[4] Benayoun finished as the league's joint fourth leading goalscorer that season, with 15 goals in 25 appearances.

Maccabi Haifa

After that season, Benayoun moved to Maccabi Haifa in a deal signed by Ya'akov Shahar (Maccabi Haifa's president) and Eli Zino (the former Be'er Sheva president), and it was agreed that the two clubs would share the profits from selling Benayoun to a European club.

In 1998, under the guidance of Dusan Uhrin and Daniel Brailovsky, Benayoun and Haifa reached the quarterfinals of the Cup Winners' Cup, and he scored a late equaliser against Paris Saint-Germain and also against SV Ried in an unforgettable 4-1 victory.

Benayoun also scored 16 goals in 29 matches for Haifa in the Liga Leumit 1998-99, finishing the season as the equal eighth leading goalscorer.

In 1999, he confronted his manager Eli Cohen, when Benayoun allegedly refused to be substituted during a match. This incident, plus a bad month for the club, ultimately caused Cohen's resignation. In the first ever Israeli Premier League of 1999 to 2000, (this league replaced the Liga Leumit which then became the second tier of club football), Benayoun scored 19 goals in 38 matches for Maccabi Haifa, and was the league's third highest goalscorer.

In the 2000-01 season under the guidance of Avram Grant, Benayoun led Haifa to a first championship after seven years and was chosen as the MVP of the season, after amassing 13 goals in 37 matches. Another successful season placed him as the league's equal sixth highest goalscorer.

The next season, Benayoun helped Maccabi Haifa win another championship, despite suffering from an injury in the beginning of the season. When he returned to play, he combined well with Giovanni Rosso, Raimondas Žutautas and Aiyegbeni Yakubu to win the championship. In his last season with Maccabi Haifa F.C., Benayoun scored 7 times in 33 matches.

Benayoun made 130 appearances for Haifa, scoring 55 goals.[4]

Racing Santander

In 2002, Benayoun moved to Racing de Santander in Spain, with his friends, Dudu Aouate, Omri Afek and Ilan Bakhar, where he became one of the big stars of the club. The La Liga 2002-03 was his first, and despite his club finishing towards the bottom of the league table, Benayoun scored 5 goals in 31 matches.

The La Liga 2003-04 was another disappointing season for Racing, who narrowly avoided relegation. Benayoun played in 35 of Racing's matches that season, netting 7 goals.

The La Liga 2004-05 saw yet another poor season for Racing, who finished 16th in the league for the third consecutive year. Although for Benayoun, it was his most successful year in Spain, becoming the fans' favourite and one of its leading scorers, with 9 goals from 35 matches. This included a hat-trick against Deportivo de La Coruña in a 4-1 away victory.

In total, he made 101 appearances for Racing, scoring 21 goals.[4]

Santander opted to cash in on Benayoun by selling him to his agents Pini Zahavi and Ronen Katsav for €3.5 million. Benayoun rejected a €5 million move to CSKA Moscow, preferring a move to England or to remain in Spain. This sparked a great deal of interest in the player with Newcastle, Tottenham, Liverpool, Bolton, Real Sociedad and Deportivo La Coruna seen as likely suitors.[5]

West Ham United

Newly promoted West Ham United completed the signing of Benayoun in July 2005 for £2.5 million with Benayoun signing a four-year contract.[6]

He made his Premiership debut for West Ham on the opening day of the 2005-06 season (13 August 2005 against Blackburn Rovers) in West Ham's 3-1 win.[7] He went on to score his first Premiership goal for the club when he netted the closing goal in a 4-0 home victory over Aston Villa on 12 September 2005.[8] More goals followed with him scoring two goals in a Premiership match against Fulham.[9] Under manager Alan Pardew Benayoun flourished, producing skilful performances and goals on one of the world's biggest football stages, including a stunning chip from the edge of the box against Fulham on 23 January 2006.[10] He also scored a last minute goal that stopped West Ham's bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur qualifying for the Champions League in the infamous food poisoning match.[11]

Benayoun played in the 125th FA Cup Final for West Ham against European Champions Liverpool.[12] West Ham lost on penalties to Liverpool after a 3-3 draw. Benayoun's display was heralded in The Guardian, stating: "He never seemed to stop running over the course of the two hours and the sprightliness of thought was inextinguishable as well."[13] In his first season for the West Ham, Benayoun scored 5 times in 34 matches.

In the last Premiership match of the 2006-07 season against Manchester United, he headed goalbound shots from Kieran Richardson and Alan Smith to safety. These saves ensured West Ham United stayed in the Premiership and avoided relegation.[14] Benayoun also played in the Hammers' unsuccessful UEFA Cup 2006-07 campaign, in which the English side were eliminated in the first round, prior to the knockout stage. Benayoun featured in both losing legs to Italian side Palermo. In his second season at West Ham, Benayoun scored 3 goals in 29 appearances.

In 63 League appearances for the Hammers, Benayoun scored 8 goals.

Liverpool

Benayoun moved to Liverpool under controversial circumstances. Yossi had verbally agreed a new five-year deal with West Ham in May 2007, only to go back on the agreement in a bid to move to Liverpool F.C.[15] The controversy was heightened on 10 July when the Israeli media reported that Benayoun's agent, Ronen Katsav, had agreed a deal with Liverpool which would mean Benayoun taking a lower pay than the £50,000 a week offered by West Ham in May.[16] On 12 July, Liverpool FC reported on their official website that the signing of Yossi Benayoun had been completed a £5 million deal with him signing a four-year contract.[17] [18]

Benayoun was introduced as a Liverpool player along with Ryan Babel on 13 July, and was given the number 11 shirt. He made his first competitive start for Liverpool against Toulouse FC in the UEFA Champions League qualifier 3rd round 1st leg. His first goal for Liverpool came on the 25 September 2007 when he scored against Reading in the Carling Cup with a wonderful solo effort. Yossi scored a second hat trick against a mismatched opponent in his first season against non-league side Havant & Waterlooville in the FA Cup, a team 122 places behind Liverpool on the league pyramid. Benayoun ended a successful first season having played 48 games scoring 11 goals in the process, including four league goals against Wigan, Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Birmingham City.

However, his performance was not enough to prevent transfer rumours in the summer of 2008. This led to the Israeli openly announcing his intention to stay, saying: "Liverpool is good for me and it was always clear I want to stay and Liverpool wants me,"[19] Yossi was given his preferred number 15 shirt (which was occupied by Peter Crouch during the 2007-2008 season but was vacated when he moved to Portsmouth) for the 2008-2009 season. Benayoun had worn the number 11 during his first season at the club, but switched to the number 15, the number he wore for West Ham and Israel.[20]

On December 6, 2008, Benayoun scored his first goal of the 2008-09 season in Liverpool's 3-1 victory over Blackburn.

On February 25, 2009, Benayoun scored a header from Fabio Aurelio's free-kick in the 82nd minute against Real Madrid at the Bernabéu in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 to give Liverpool a 1–0 win [21]. This is probably the most important goal he has scored in his career to date. "To score in the Champions League was special. It was one of the favourite goals of my career...I am really pleased to score at the Bernabeu but the most important thing was to get the victory", Benayoun said after the match.[22]

Again on April 4, 2009, Benayoun came on as a substitute in Liverpool's match against Fulham to score a dramatic winner in the 94th minute.[23] On April 21, 2009, he scored two goals, including a 92nd minute goal to equalize against Arsenal in a 4-4 draw.[24]

Benayoun finished his second season at Anfield in spectacular fashion; scoring a goal in each of Liverpool's last three home matches. In the 2008-09 season, Benayoun played in 39 matches, scoring 9 goals, including eight league goals against Wigan, Blackburn, Newcastle, Sunderland, Fulham, Tottenham and a brace against Arsenal. He established a regular starting position in the Liverpool team in the second half of the season and was heavily responsible for their continued pressure on Manchester United in their quest for the English Premier League title.

On 6 July, 2009, he signed a two-year contract extension tying him to the club until 2013.[25]

International career

Benayoun was a member of the Israel U16 team that came third in the 1996 UEFA European Under-16 Championship.[26]

He made his senior debut for Israel against Portugal in a friendly on November 18, 1998 that resulted in a 2-0 away loss. Benayoun also has an international hat-trick to his name, which was scored in a EURO 2000 qualifier against the San Marino national football team at Ramat Gan Stadium on 8 September 1999. The match finished as an 8-0 win for Israel.

During the World Cup 2006 qualifiers, Benayoun became the leading player of the Israeli national team after equalizing against Cyprus at home (in a game that ended 2-1 to Israel) and scoring twice against Switzerland. In the away game in Cyprus, Benayoun assisted the winning goal after Nir Davidovich saved a crucial penalty. His strong performances gave Israel a chance at qualifying for the World Cup, but they missed out on goal difference.

Just prior to the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers, Benayoun was given the captaincy of the Israeli national team. In eight appearances in the qualifiers, Benayoun has scored two goals. Benayoun's motivation and dedication to the Israeli national team is well documented. He puts his body on the line for his country, with one such example occurring in a Euro 2008 qualifier against the Croatian national team. Benayoun received several injections in order to be available for the match despite knowing the effects it could have in the following weeks. After the match, the injury worsened and he had to miss over three weeks of football for his team at the time, West Ham United.

International goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
01. 5 September 1999 Tsirion Stadium, Limassol, Cyprus  Cyprus
2 – 2
3 – 2
Euro 2000 qualifying
02. 8 September 1999 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  San Marino
1 – 0
8 – 0
Euro 2000 qualifying
03. 8 September 1999 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  San Marino
4 – 0
8 – 0
Euro 2000 qualifying
04. 8 September 1999 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  San Marino
6 – 0
8 – 0
Euro 2000 qualifying
05. 15 November 2000 Estadio Primeiro de Maio, Braga, Portugal  Portugal
2 – 1
2 – 1
Friendly
06. 5 September 2002 Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg  Luxembourg
0 – 5
0 – 5
Friendly
07. 8 September 2004 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Cyprus
1 – 1
2 – 1
2006 World Cup qualifying
08. 9 October 2004 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel]   Switzerland
1 – 0
2 – 2
2006 World Cup qualifying
09. 9 October 2004 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel   Switzerland
2 – 2
2 – 2
2006 World Cup qualifying
10. 9 February 2005 Teddy Kollek Stadium, Jerusalem, Israel  Croatia
2 – 2
3 – 3
Friendly
11. 8 October 2005 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Faroe Islands
1 – 0
2 – 1
2006 World Cup qualifying
12. 15 August 2006 Petrol Arena Stadium, Celje, Slovenia  Slovenia
0 – 1
1 – 1
Friendly
13. 6 September 2006 Stadion de Goffert, Nijmegen, Netherlands  Andorra
1 – 0
4 – 1
Euro 2008 qualifying
14. 15 November 2006 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Croatia
2 – 3
3 – 4
Euro 2008 qualifying
15. 26 March 2008 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Chile
1 – 0
1 – 0
Friendly
16. 6 September 2008 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel   Switzerland
1 – 2
2 – 2
2010 World Cup qualifying
17. 11 October 2008 Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg  Luxembourg
0 – 1
1 – 3
2010 World Cup qualifying
18. 15 October 2008 Skonto Stadions, Riga, Latvia  Latvia
0 – 1
1 – 1
2010 World Cup qualifying
19. 11 February 2009 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Hungary
1 - 0
1 – 0
Friendly

Club statistics

Club Performance
Club Season England Premier League FA Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
West Ham 2005-06 34 5 6 0 - - - - - - 40 5
West Ham 2006-07 29 3 1 0 - - 2 0 - - 32 3
Liverpool 2007-08 30 4 3 3 3 1 11 3 - - 47 11
Liverpool 2008-09 32 8 1 0 - - 7 1 - - 40 9
Club Total 126 23 11 5 3 1 22 13 - - 162 28
Last updated 16 June 2009

Honours

Individual

  • Israeli Premier League Most Valuable Player (1):
    • 2000-01

Club

References

  1. ^ "1ST TEAM SQUAD PROFILES". Liverpoolfc.tv. 2008-07-08. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  2. ^ a b "Benayoun the kid for Hammers". Article on uefa.com. July 22, 2005. Retrieved July 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c "The Premiership Interview : Yossi Benayoun". The Independent. September 24, 2005. Retrieved July 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b c Soccerbase: Yossi Benayoun, Racing Post. Retrieved 23 June 2007. Cite error: The named reference "sbase" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  5. ^ Kendall, Mark. "Agents buy Benayoun's rights". Skysports. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  6. ^ "West Ham complete Benayoun swoop", BBC Sport, 19 July 2005. Retrieved 23 June 2007.
  7. ^ "West Ham 3-1 Blackburn". BBC. 2005-08-13. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  8. ^ "West ham 4-0 Aston Villa". BBC. 2005-09-12. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  9. ^ "West Ham 3-3 Fulham". BBC. 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  10. ^ "West Ham 2-1 Fulham". BBC. 2006-01-23. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  11. ^ "West Ham 2-1 Tottenham". BBC. 2006-05-07. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  12. ^ "Reds in seventh heaven", TheFA.com, 13 May 2006. Retrieved 26 June 2007.
  13. ^ McCarra, Kevin (2006-05-15). "Gerrard ignores striking poverty and drives Liverpool to fresh glory". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-08-06. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ "Man Utd 0-1 West Ham". BBC. 2007-05-13. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  15. ^ O'Rourke, Peter. "Yossi agrees new hammers deal". www.skysportsnews.com. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  16. ^ "Benayoun leaves West Ham for Liverpool", ynetnews.com, 10 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  17. ^ "Benayoun signs for Liverpool", Liverpool Football Club Official Website, 12 July 2007. Retrieved 13 July 2007.
  18. ^ "Benayoun seals Liverpool transfer", BBC Sport, 12 July 2007. Retrieved 14 July 2007.
  19. ^ "Benayoun staying with reds". www.cksysports.com. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  20. ^ "Yossi switches numbers". www.lfc.tv. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  21. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/7899591.stm
  22. ^ "Liverpool's Match-Winner Yossi Benayoun Revels In Real Madrid Success". www.goal.com. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  23. ^ "Benayoun keeps hopes alive". www.irishtimes.com. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  24. ^ "English Soccer: Benayoun scores 2 but Arshavin dents Liverpool's title hopes". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  25. ^ "Benayoun extends Liverpool deal". BBC Sport. 2009-07-056. Retrieved 2009-07-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  26. ^ "Benayoun the kid for Hammers", uefa.com, 22 July 2005. Retrieved 23 June 2007.

Further reading

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yossi_Benayoun&oldid=300997611"