Nir Davidovich

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Nir Davidovich
Personal information
Date of birth December 17, 1976 (1976-12-17) (age 31)
Place of birth    Haifa, Israel
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position Goalkeeper
Club information
Current club Maccabi Haifa F.C.
Number 1
Youth clubs
1986-1994 Maccabi Haifa F.C.
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
1994 - Maccabi Haifa F.C. 237 (1)   
National team2
1995-1997
1998-present		 Flag of Israel Israel U21
Flag of Israel Israel		 19 (0)
43 (0)

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only.
2 National team caps and goals correct
as of 06:36, 13 november 2007 (UTC).
* Appearances (Goals)

Nir Davidovich (Hebrew: ניר דוידוביץ'‎; born December 17, 1976 and also spelled Davidovitch) is an Israeli goalkeeper who plays for Maccabi Haifa football club and the Israeli national team.

Davidovich is highly skillful goalkeeper, flexible and intelligent, and highly consistent. He is considered one of best goalkeepers in Israel and plays as the senior goalkeeper in the Israeli national team. Davidovich suffered from 3 serious injuries but managed to recover and lead Maccabi Haifa to its 8th championship, winning the MVP title. Davidovich played all of his career in Maccabi Haifa and considered a "symbol" of the club along with the veteran captain Arik Benado. Many talk about him as the successor of legendary goalkeeper Avi Ran, a Maccabi Haifa prodigy who died in a diving accident.[citation needed]


[edit] Personal data

  • Nickname: "The Octopus"
  • Birth Date: December 17, 1976.
  • Played in: Maccabi Haifa.
  • First Appearance:
  • Number of appearances (as for August, 2004) at:
    • Israel national team - 31 (1 as captain).
    • European competitions - 20.
    • Domestic league - 179.
    • Domestic cup - 17.
  • Height: 185 cm.
  • Weight: 85 kg.
  • Status: married to Avital, with two kids and one on the way.
  • Honours: 2 championships, 1 Israeli cup, 1 MVP of the season.

[edit] Football career

  • Played in each age-class youth national team of Israel.
  • 1995: Promoted to senior team of Maccabi Haifa.
  • 1996: Gave outstanding performance when Maccabi Haifa kept a 0-0 against Hapoel Petah-Tikva after 3 (!) "greens" were sent off.
  • 1997: Overcame veteran goalkeeper Bonni Ginzburg to become MHFC senior goalkeeper.
  • 1998: First international appearance at Israel 4-0 victory over Turkey.
  • 1998: Wins the Israeli cup after 2-0 victory over Hapoel Jerusalem.
  • 1998: Excels in 1-1 draw against French top football club Paris Saint-Germain.
  • 1999: Injured seriously in the crounch and missed the entire season.
  • 2000\2001: Won the championship with Maccabi Haifa, conceding only 28 goals (the lowest in that season).
  • 2001: Injured in his knee in the match versus Spain, where he kept the Israeli goal clean until he was replaced in half-time. [1],[2]
  • 2002: Missed most of the season because of his knee injury.
  • 2003: Recovered from knee injury and played the final matches in the league.
  • 2003: Excelled in MHFC 0:0 draw against Valencia. After his performance he received grades of 10 in the Israeli press (just seven players received grade of 10 in the history of the Israeli press) and was dubbed "The Octopus" by the Spanish press.
  • 2003\2004: Won the championship with Maccabi Haifa and chosen by player, press and coaches as the MVP of the season.
  • 2004: saves a penalty kick as Israel beat Cyprus 2-1 in a 2006 World Cup qualifier.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Maccabi Haifa F.C. – current squad

1 Davidovich • 3 Harazi • 4 Crosa • 5 Lima • 7 Boccoli • 8 Meshumar • 9 Afek • 10 Fanteni • 11 Rosso • 12 Renato • 17 Masilela • 18 Gita • 14 Gafney • 19 Dahan • 20 Katan • 21 Keinan • 22 Youlzeri • 23 Kiyal • 24 Maimon • 25 Danin • 26 Rafaelov • 33 Amos • Manager: Levy