Eyal Berkovic (or Berkovich, he, אייל ברקוביץ'; born 2 April 1972) is an Israeli former professional

association footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

, football coach, team owner and television talk show presenter. As a player he was an attacking midfielder who spent most of his career in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

playing in the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

for

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

and

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

. He also had a spell in the

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...

with

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

as well as beginning and finishing his career in his native Israel for

Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football ...

and

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

. He made 78 appearances for

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, and is considered one of the nation's greatest players.

Graeme Souness Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit. A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...

described Berkovic as "a tremendous passer. In the last third of the field, he is the best that I've ever worked with." Berkovic was also noted for various clashes with managers and players, including

Kevin Keegan Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...

(his manager at

), and Welsh striker

John Hartson John Hartson (born 5 April 1975) is a Welsh former professional footballer, coach and sports television pundit for S4C, Sky Sports, Premier Sports TV and BT Sport. As a player he was a striker, notably for Scottish club Celtic where his time ...

. Following retirement he was appointed as general manager of

Maccabi Netanya Maccabi Netanya F.C. ( he, מועדון כדורגל מכבי נתניה, ''Football Club Maccabi Netanya'') is an Israeli football club based in Netanya. Established in 1934, the club was a founding member of the Israeli League in 1949. Afte ...

and later held a similar position of Hapoel Tel Aviv. He is the former owner of Hapoel Rishon LeZion.

Early life

Berkovic was born in

moshav A moshav ( he, מוֹשָׁב, plural ', lit. ''settlement, village'') is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists between 1904 an ...

Regba Regba ( he, רֶגְבָּה) is a moshav shitufi in northern Israel. Located near Nahariya, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Asher Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Regba was established in 1946 next to the Palesti ...

, to a family of

Ashkenazi Jewish Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

(

Hungarian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Hungary dates back to at least the Kingdom of Hungary, with some records even predating the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin in 895 CE by over 600 years. Written sources prove that Jewish communities lived i ...

) descent, and is the older brother of former Israeli footballer

Nir Berkovic Nir Berkovic ( he, ניר ברקוביץ; born 16 November 1982) is an Israeli former football player and currently the head coach of Ironi Kiryat Shmona. He is the younger brother of former Manchester City player Eyal Berkovic. Berkovic born ...

Club career

Maccabi Haifa

Berkovic started his career at

in 1989, playing there until 1996. During his time with the club he won league titles in 1990–91 and 1993–94, and the State Cup three times, including a 'double' in the 1990–91 season. His performances for the club earned him a call-up to the Israeli national team as well as the

Most Valuable Player award In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

for the 1993–94 season.

Southampton

For the 1996–97 season, Berkovic signed on a season-long loan for English club

. He proved to be a big influence, and was a major part of a 6–3 victory in 1996 over

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

, as he scored twice and got three assists.

West Ham United

The next season, he was signed by manager

Harry Redknapp Henry James Redknapp (born 2 March 1947) is an English former football manager and player. He has previously managed AFC Bournemouth, West Ham United, Portsmouth, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Queens Park Rangers and Birmingham City. In his ...

for

for £1.75 million, for whom he played for two seasons. Well liked by West Ham fans, he became an instant fans' hero by scoring the decisive goal against

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

in a 2–1 win on his Upton Park debut on 13 August 1997. He played in 79 games in all competitions, scoring 12 goals. Striker

had a prolific 1997–98 season for West Ham helped by Berkovic's assists. In a training ground bust-up between the two, Hartson kicked Berkovic in the head, after Berkovic had punched Hartson in the leg as he attempted to help Berkovic to his feet after a crunching tackle. The incident was captured on camera. Berkovic said of the incident "''if my head had been a ball, it would have been in the top corner of the net''". Hartson was fined £20,000 for the incident and suspended for three games.

Celtic

Soon after the incident, he was signed for £5.75 million by

, who were coached by

John Barnes John Charles Bryan Barnes MBE (born 7 November 1963) is a former professional football player and manager. He currently works as an author, commentator and pundit for ESPN and SuperSport. Initially a quick, skilful left winger, he moved to cent ...

. In November 1999 Berkovic was subjected to religious taunts by Hearts fans while playing at their Tynecastle ground. He played for the Scottish club for two years, scoring ten goals, but

Martin O'Neill Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Starting his career in Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playi ...

left him out of the team when he took over as manager and Berkovic returned to England to join

on loan for the second half of the 2000–01 season, where he scored twice against

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

and Grimsby, helping Blackburn achieve promotion to the Premier League in the process. Berkovic's loan move to Blackburn was not made into a permanent deal. The following year

's manager

signed him in a permanent move. During his tenure in Scotland, Berkovic struggled to win over the Celtic fans.

Manchester City

In July 2001, Berkovic joined Manchester City for a reported fee of £1.5 million. He made his debut in August 2001, scoring one goal in a 3–0 home win against

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

. In his second game for the team he suffered an injury which prompted the team to sign

Ali Benarbia Ali Benarbia ( ar, علي بن عربية; born 8 October 1968) is an Algerian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, he is a TV presenter for Al Jazeera Sports in Doha. As a player he was a midfielder who notably spent time ...

, an additional playmaker. When Berkovic returned, the City team began to play with both playmakers in a 3–5–2 formation with Kevin Horlock operating in the anchor midfield position. This was a successful formation, earning City promotion in emphatic style, with 99 points and a record 108 goals. In an FA Cup game against then-Premiership team

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...

, Berkovic scored a volley goal set up by Benarbia from a corner and City beat the team in the league above them 4–1. The following season when City were in the Premiership, Berkovic was instrumental in a 3–1 victory over local rivals

, a team he had also helped

demolish 6–3 in the 1996–97 season, scoring two goals. The tactic of playing with two playmakers was continued in the Premiership but although City played well, results were not too favourable and Keegan subsequently decided to play with Berkovic as the only playmaker. Berkovic was voted as Manchester City's player of the season in 2002–03 in the club's magazine. Berkovic received abuse from some of the City support when he made a 'throat-slitting' gesture to a female fan during a

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

tie at Maine Road against

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...

The FA The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and ...

investigated the incident.

Portsmouth

A fallout with manager Keegan saw him move to

for £500,000 in January 2004. His first game for Pompey was against Manchester City, whom he helped beat 4–2. Berkovic soon established himself in the first team at Pompey where he was reunited with former West Ham United manager Redknapp, who described him as a "special footballer". Berkovic became a vital part of Portsmouth's drive for

FA Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

survival, scoring his first goal against Tottenham Hotspur. However, despite scoring against Fulham in the league and Leeds in the League Cup, he failed to hold down a regular starting place in the team for the 2004–05 season, and in January 2005 left Portsmouth. He had been linked with a move to

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

but instead decided to return to the country of his birth. He wanted to return to

but was rejected, leading him to a decision to sign for rivals

Maccabi Tel Aviv

The return to Israel opened with promise as the 2005–06 season was the 100th anniversary for

and the club wanted to celebrate with a championship. The club signed several more stars such as

Avi Nimni Avi Nimni ( he, אבי נמני; born 26 April 1972) is a former Israeli football player and Maccabi Tel Aviv's highest ever scorer. He is regarded as one of Maccabi Tel Aviv's greatest players ever. Until 2006, he served as the captain of the I ...

, Giovani Rosso,

Blessing Kaku Blessing Kaku (born 5 March 1978 in Ughelli, Nigeria) is a former Nigeria national football team, Nigerian international football (soccer), football player, who was a member of the national squad at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He played ...

, Avi Yehiel, and Eugen Trica. Berkovic announced at a press conference that the team would go all the way to win the Double. Although the team had a positive start to the season, they were not able to sustain good form and their chances of winning the title diminished, resulting in a sacking of the coach

Nir Klinger Nir Klinger ( he, ניר קלינגר; born 25 May 1966) is an Israeli football coach and former player. During the 1990s, Klinger served as Captain for Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Israel national football team. He was the coach of Maccabi Tel ...

, who was replaced with

Ton Caanen Ton Caanen (born March 18, 1966 in Geleen, Netherlands) is a Dutch football manager. Managerial career Aside from a few years in the amateur Dutch leagues, Caanen never played professional football. He got his start as a manager in his hometow ...

. Berkovic announced his retirement from professional football on 7 May 2006.

International career

Berkovic gained 78 caps and scored 9 goals for the senior Israel national team.

Management career

In the summer of 2006 he was appointed as the general manager of

. However, he was manager only for two months in which time he did not oversee any games. He stated that he left the job due to poor professional relations with Daniel Jammer, the club's owner and chairman. Berkovic had been an active manager in the transfer market during his two months, signing 15 players including Mazuwa Nsumbu,

Liran Strauber Liran Strauber (or Shtrauber, he, לירן שטראובר; born 20 August 1974) is a former Israeli association footballer who played as a goalkeeper. At international level, Strauber was capped at under-17 and under-21, and played eight time ...

and

Itay Shechter Itay Menachem Shechter (or Etey Schechter,http://antisemitism.org.il/en/70261/ he, איתי שכטר; born 22 February 1987) is an Israeli professional footballer who plays as a forward for Hapoel Petah Tikva. He has played for the Israel natio ...

. In May 2014 he was appointed as general manager of Hapoel Tel Aviv. In January 2015 he resigned following a break-down in his relationship with club owner,

Haim Ramon Haim Ramon ( he, חיים רמון, born 10 April 1950) is an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset between 1983 and 2009, and as both Vice Prime Minister and Minister in the Prime Minister's Office with responsibility for st ...

. On 11 May 2015, Berkovic became the owner of Hapoel Rishon LeZion from

Liga Leumit Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second division of the Israeli Football League, and below its Premier League. Structure There are 16 clubs in the league. At the end of each season, the two lowest-place ...

, he paid $385,000 for the ownership of the club.

Overseas career statistics

Honours

Maccabi Haifa *

: 1990–91, 1993–94 *

Israel State Cup The Israel State Cup ( he, גביע המדינה, ''Gvia HaMedina''), is a knockout cup competition in Israeli football, run by the Israel Football Association (IFA). The State Cup was first held in 1928 as the People's Cup. Because it involve ...

: 1990–91, 1992–93, 1994–95 *

Toto Cup The Israel Toto Cup ( he, גביע הטוטו, ''Gvia Ha'Toto'') is an association football tournament that features clubs in the two highest divisions in Israel: the Israeli Premier League ( Ligat Ha'Al), and the second division Liga Leumit. Fro ...

: 1993–94 West Ham *

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

Celtic *

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...

: 1999–2000 Blackburn Rovers *

Football League First Division The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

runner-up: 2000–01 Manchester City *

champions: 2001–02 Individual *Israel Footballer of the Year: 1994

References

External links

*
"Berkovic signs with Maccabi (Tel-Aviv)"
at Eurosport.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Berkovic, Eyal 1972 births Living people Israeli Ashkenazi Jews Israeli footballers Jewish footballers Israel international footballers Israeli expatriate footballers Maccabi Haifa F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players Celtic F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Southampton F.C. players West Ham United F.C. players Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. players Liga Leumit players Premier League players Scottish Premier League players Israeli Premier League players Expatriate footballers in Scotland Expatriate footballers in England Israeli expatriate sportspeople in England Israeli expatriate sportspeople in Scotland People from Regba Footballers from Nahariya Israeli people of Hungarian-Jewish descent Israeli football managers Association football midfielders Israel under-21 international footballers Israeli Football Hall of Fame inductees Israeli Footballer of the Year recipients