For the first time in the history of Hapoel Beer-Sheva in the European arena, the team will hold an official match a day after Yom Kippur.
2 Viewing the gallery
The stadium of Lech Poznan. Contains 45,000 places
(Photo: Shutterstock)
This Thursday evening, 24 hours after the end of the fast, Beer Sheva will face Lech Poznan in the third round of home 3 in the Conference League.
Lech Poznan plays in a stadium that has been significantly upgraded since it was established. Its construction began in 1968 and ended in 1980.
Over the years, the stadium hosted about 30 matches of Lech Poznan in various European frameworks, including various stages of the Champions League, the UEFA Cup, the Holders’ Cup and the Intertoto Cup. In the early 1990s, Poznan hosted the Bnei Yehuda, Maccabi Haifa and Bitar teams in the stadium Jerusalem.
In 2002, it was decided to extensively renovate the stadium following a sharp jump in the number of spectators at Lech Poznan games. The renovation began in 2003 and by 2006 the construction of a fourth stand including a roof was completed. Later, the stadium underwent another renovation in preparation for Euro 2012, as part of which the rest of the stands were built and the stadium’s capacity increased to 45,000 seats.
Beyond the fact that Beer Sheva will play a day after the holiest day for the Jewish people, this is a game that is a milestone in the group stage.
According to the results so far and according to early estimates, Beer-Sheva and Poznan are expected to compete for second place at home, which leads to a playoff game for the right to qualify for the next stage in the Conference League.
So far it seems that Villarreal is expected to move up from first place while Austria Wien looks like the team that will finish in fourth place.
These assessments lead to the fact that the pair of games against Poznan (next Thursday on October 13 at “Turner”) are the most important for Beer-Sheva.
The club estimated that the preparations for the game will not be affected even though it will be held 24 hours after a day of fasting and prayers.
The team took off for Poland this morning (Monday), and already in the afternoon the first practice is expected to be held on Polish soil.
Tomorrow morning, the eve of Yom Kippur, a morning training session is planned, after which the team will enter the holiday procedure.
The team manager, Avitar Iloz, and the club’s travel agent, Eli Maslam, visited Poznan last week, and made all the logistical arrangements for the game, which will be held at an unusual time.
2 Viewing the gallery
Iluz and Al Abid. The manager took care of the logistical preparations and the player will take care of order in the defense
(Photo: Daniel Cohen)
There is a very small Jewish community in the city of Poznan, and there is no active synagogue. In 1907, a synagogue was inaugurated in the city, which was intended for 1,200 worshippers.
During World War II, all the Jewish symbols of the synagogue were destroyed and the building was converted into a swimming pool and a rehabilitation center for Nazi soldiers.
At the end of World War II and in the absence of a local Jewish community, which was dispersed during the war, the building became a municipal swimming pool.
In 2002, the synagogue building was returned to the Jewish community of Poland, but the attempt to turn the place into a gallery was unsuccessful. Today the building is abandoned, and is a candidate for demolition.
Iloz and Maslam agreed with the management of the hotel where the group will be staying that a hall in the hotel will be turned into a synagogue for 24 hours.
The people of Beer-Sheva flew with them to Poland a Chabad emissary who took care of Torah readings and siddurs and also served as the public’s emissary in prayers.
About 20 Jews who live in Poznan will join the prayers in which all the Jews in the Hapoel Be’er Sheva delegation will take part.
At the end of the holiday and after a light meal and recovery, a light training session is planned before the game which will be held 24 hours later.
The professional team assessed before the flight that there would be no reason for Yom Kippur in Poznan, with all its uniqueness, to harm the players’ physical and mental readiness for the important game.
Despite the missing squad (Roy Gordana, Andre Martins and Adrian Fawn are not registered for Europe, and Shafi Suleimanov remains in Israel because the Polish authorities banned his entry due to his being a Russian citizen) the club does not hide the fact that a draw in Poland and a win at home can help achieve the goal: second place.
According to the estimates, the coach Eliniv Breda will start the game in Poland with five players in the defensive line while hoping that Miguel Vitor will be fit for the game after the quite a few loads he went through in the recent period: league games, playing in the national team and the birth of his son.