Ben Sahar
Encyclopedia
Ben Sahar is an Israel
i football striker who currently plays for Ligue 1
side Auxerre
on loan from Espanyol
.
At just 16, Sahar was already the equivalent of a second-year apprentice at Chelsea. He first caught Chelsea's eye in an Under-16 fixture against Ireland in 2004 and has since played for the Israeli Under-21 national team
and the Israeli national team
. Before transferring to Chelsea, Sahar was on the Hapoel Tel Aviv books, and while he was promoted to the first team by the manager Itzhak Shum
, Sahar did not feature in any matches due to his transfer being completed before the start of the 2006–07 season.
Before coming to Chelsea, he got Polish citizenship (his mother Batya is of Polish origin), which grants him an automatic right to play in the UK, as Poland is an EU
member state.
. There he was enrolled in the Sportop Football Academy, before joining the youth ranks of Hapoel Tel Aviv.
of the English Premier League in May 2006 from Hapoel Tel Aviv for £320,000, having previously spent a two-month period on trial at Stamford Bridge
.
Sahar was called up to the Chelsea first team to play Macclesfield Town
in the FA Cup
on 6 January 2007, and made his debut coming on as a substitute for Salomon Kalou
in the 76th minute. Four days later, Sahar came on as a substitute in the 60th minute of Chelsea's 1–1 draw with Wycombe Wanderers
in the League Cup
. He made his Premiership debut on 13 January 2007, coming off the bench to replace Arjen Robben
in the 82nd minute of the match against Wigan Athletic
. He later made two additional Premier League substitute appearances for the Blues that season, against Manchester United
and Everton
.
side Queens Park Rangers
, on loan, for the beginning of the 2007–08 season, on 26 July 2007, for an initial three-month period. He followed this up with two goals in a pre-season friendly against Premier League side Fulham, earning Queens Park Rangers a 2–1 win. Following this, his loan-deal was then extended to 2 January 2008. Sahar suffered numerous injuries during this period and did not manage to score during his nine league appearances.
completed the signing of Sahar on an initial one-month loan from Chelsea on 21 February 2008. This was extended until 19 April, and again until the end of the season on 4 May 2008. Sahar scored his first goal for Sheffield Wednesday against Crystal Palace
on 22 March 2008. He followed this up with further strikes against Scunthorpe United
and Norwich City
. The latter goal was important as it ensured Sheffield Wednesday's survival in the Championship.
Sahar finished with three goals from twelve appearances for Sheffield Wednesday in his second loan spell in the Championship
.
winners Portsmouth
, and on 1 July he was officially unveiled as a Portsmouth player. ahar joined Premier League side Portsmouth on a six-month loan deal on 1 July 2008, and was given the number 26 shirt. He featured regularly in pre-season for Portsmouth, making seven appearances and scoring against Nigerian Premier League
champions Kano Pillars
, Conference South
side Havant & Waterlooville
, and Southern Football League Division One South & West side Gosport Borough
.
However, Sahar was forced to endure yet another unsuccessful loan spell. Despite being involved in many of Portsmouth's pre-season matches, Sahar did not play once for Portsmouth; he was an unused substitute in three of their matches. “If I had played a few games and they said I wasn’t good enough, then fine. But the fact is that I haven’t been given that chance to shine,” Sahar said of his disappointment at not being given one opportunity to prove himself.
side De Graafschap
on loan on 2 January 2009. He played for De Graafschap until the end of the season. He played his first match for De Graafschap in a friendly against Turkish club Sivasspor
. He scored his first two goals for De Graafschap in a friendly match against Belgian team K.V. Mechelen. He scored his first goal in the Eredivisie
on 17 January 2009 in his debut match, against Willem II. After only 17 minutes, Sahar received a pass from Luuk de Jong
and then curled the shot into the top corner, after passing a defender in the 18 yards (16.5 m) box. His second goal came in an away game against fellow relegation strugglers, Roda JC. His third goal for De Graafschap came in a home game against SC Heerenveen. In this game, he finished well to score the game's first goal with his left foot, after good play from Luuk de Jong. His fourth and fifth goals came in the home game against NEC Nijmegen. Sahar scored a penalty for the opening goal after missing an earlier penalty attempt. He scored his second goal of the match with a close range strike. This match finished in a 2–2 draw. De Graafschap finished second-bottom in the 2008–09 Eredivisie. This meant that they would have to participate in play-offs with teams from the Dutch second division in order to retain their place in the Eredivisie. In their first play-off match against MVV Maastricht
, Sahar scored a goal within 60 seconds of the match's commencement to set up a 3–2 away win for De Graafschap.
Sahar finished with five goals and one assist in 16 appearances for De Graafschap in the 2008–09 Eredivise, and in the relegation playoffs he scored one goal and made two assists in six games, making of a total of six goals and three assists in 22 games.
for a fee of £1million on a four-year deal, after leaving Stamford Bridge
in the summer of 2009. He was presented with the number 14 jersey. On 2 August 2009, Sahar scored two goals in a friendly match against Liverpool
as a substitute, also picking up the man-of-the-match award in a 3–0 win. These were the second and third goals of the match, scored at the club's inaugural match at their new stadium, the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat. Sahar scored his first league goal for Espanyol on 23 September 2009, with a header in a 2–1 victory over Málaga
; also his club's first goal at the stadium in a competitive match.
and scored in the final qualifying round in the away leg versus Red Bull Salzburg.
Sahar found great difficulty scoring in the Liga Al upon arrival. Assistant manager, Yossi Abuksis attributed this to a mental difficulty that Sahar created for himself. Sahar came back to Israel as a superstar and the pressures that came with this status were difficult to bear at the start of the season. When Itay Shechter went out with an injury midseason, Sahar capitalized on the increased playing time to create a striking partnership with Toto Tamuz
.
side Auxerre
on a one year loan.auxerre also keep an option to buy the player for a fee of 1.5 million euros
in a playoff against France
– scoring Israel's goal in the away leg which ended 1–1, on the way to Israel's shock qualification to UEFA U-21 Championship 2007 with a 2–1 aggregate win.
On 7 February 2007, at the age of 17-and-a-half, Sahar became the youngest player to ever play for the Israel national football team
, in a friendly match against Ukraine
(a feat since surpassed by Gai Assulin
). In doing so, he became Chelsea's youngest player to earn an international cap. He earned his second cap against England
on 24 March 2007, coming on as a substitute in the 69th minute. Sahar became the youngest player to score for the Israel national football team in his third appearance with the team on 28 March 2007, scoring two goals against Estonia
as a substitute in Israel's 4–0 win. This was the youngest international goal scored by a Chelsea player. Sahar scored his third international goal on 6 September 2008, with an equaliser in the 90th minute against Switzerland
in a 2010 FIFA World Cup
qualifier, following up with his fourth and fifth international goals a year later in the 2010 World Cup qualifier
against Luxembourg
on 9 September 2009.
. Under the terms of his military service, he will go to his base every time he is on vacation in Israel.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i football striker who currently plays for Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
side Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
on loan from Espanyol
RCD Espanyol
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona is a sports club based in Barcelona, Spain. It is best known for its football team. Espanyol currently play in the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat with seats for 40,500 spectators. It was inaugurated on 2 August 2009...
.
At just 16, Sahar was already the equivalent of a second-year apprentice at Chelsea. He first caught Chelsea's eye in an Under-16 fixture against Ireland in 2004 and has since played for the Israeli Under-21 national team
Israel national under-21 football team
Israel's national Under-21 team , also known as Israel Under-21s or Israel U-21s, is considered to be the feeder team for the Israel national football team...
and the Israeli national team
Israel national football team
The Israel national football team is the national football team of Israel, controlled by the Israel Football Association .Israel National Football is the direct successor of the Eretz Yisrael National Team during British Mandate...
. Before transferring to Chelsea, Sahar was on the Hapoel Tel Aviv books, and while he was promoted to the first team by the manager Itzhak Shum
Itzhak Shum
Itzhak Shum is a retired Israeli football player and was lastly the manager of Cypriot First Division side Alki.-Playing career:He played 78 times and scored 10 goals for Israel national football team and was a participant at the 1970 FIFA World Cup and the 1968 and 1976 Olympic Games.-Manager...
, Sahar did not feature in any matches due to his transfer being completed before the start of the 2006–07 season.
Before coming to Chelsea, he got Polish citizenship (his mother Batya is of Polish origin), which grants him an automatic right to play in the UK, as Poland is an EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
member state.
Club career
Sahar began playing football in his hometown of Modi'in, IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. There he was enrolled in the Sportop Football Academy, before joining the youth ranks of Hapoel Tel Aviv.
Chelsea
Sahar signed for ChelseaChelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
of the English Premier League in May 2006 from Hapoel Tel Aviv for £320,000, having previously spent a two-month period on trial at Stamford Bridge
Stamford Bridge (stadium)
Stamford Bridge is a football stadium in Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London, and is the home of Chelsea Football Club. The stadium is located within the Moore Park Estate also known as Walham Green and is often referred to as simply The Bridge...
.
Sahar was called up to the Chelsea first team to play Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield Town F.C.
Macclesfield Town Football Club is an English football team. The club was formed in 1874 and is based in the town of Macclesfield in Cheshire. The team play its home games at the 6,355 capacity Moss Rose stadium...
in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
on 6 January 2007, and made his debut coming on as a substitute for Salomon Kalou
Salomon Kalou
Salomon Armand Magloire Kalou is an Ivorian footballer who plays as a striker for Chelsea in the Premier League.He is often used on the wings at Chelsea. He has a preference for playing on the left wing as this gives him opportunities to cut inside and take shots with his favoured right foot...
in the 76th minute. Four days later, Sahar came on as a substitute in the 60th minute of Chelsea's 1–1 draw with Wycombe Wanderers
Wycombe Wanderers F.C.
Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional football team from High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, which has been promoted to Football League One after finishing third in Football League Two in the season 2010–11. The club's nicknames are "The Chairboys" and "The Blues", and they play...
in the League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
. He made his Premiership debut on 13 January 2007, coming off the bench to replace Arjen Robben
Arjen Robben
Arjen Robben is a Dutch footballer who plays for the German Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. Though often classified as a forward, he usually plays behind the forwards as a winger, and he is also known for his dribbling skills...
in the 82nd minute of the match against Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
. He later made two additional Premier League substitute appearances for the Blues that season, against Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
and Everton
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
.
Queens Park Rangers
Sahar joined ChampionshipFootball League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
side Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers F.C.
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in White City, Hammersmith and Fulham, west London. As the 2010-11 Football League Championship champions, they now play in the top tier of English football the Premier League, for the first time in 15 years...
, on loan, for the beginning of the 2007–08 season, on 26 July 2007, for an initial three-month period. He followed this up with two goals in a pre-season friendly against Premier League side Fulham, earning Queens Park Rangers a 2–1 win. Following this, his loan-deal was then extended to 2 January 2008. Sahar suffered numerous injuries during this period and did not manage to score during his nine league appearances.
Sheffield Wednesday
After Sahar returned from an injury-plagued spell at QPR, Sheffield WednesdaySheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
completed the signing of Sahar on an initial one-month loan from Chelsea on 21 February 2008. This was extended until 19 April, and again until the end of the season on 4 May 2008. Sahar scored his first goal for Sheffield Wednesday against Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
on 22 March 2008. He followed this up with further strikes against Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United F.C.
Scunthorpe United Football Club is an English association football team based in the town of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, who play in the Football League One....
and Norwich City
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
. The latter goal was important as it ensured Sheffield Wednesday's survival in the Championship.
Sahar finished with three goals from twelve appearances for Sheffield Wednesday in his second loan spell in the Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
.
Portsmouth
On 12 June 2008, it was reported that Sahar was in Holland to discuss another season-long loan with Dutch club NEC Nijmegen. However, according to NEC officials a deal could not be signed with Sahar due to financial issues. Instead he agreed to a six-month loan deal with FA CupFA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
winners Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
, and on 1 July he was officially unveiled as a Portsmouth player. ahar joined Premier League side Portsmouth on a six-month loan deal on 1 July 2008, and was given the number 26 shirt. He featured regularly in pre-season for Portsmouth, making seven appearances and scoring against Nigerian Premier League
Nigerian Premier League
The Nigeria Premier League is the highest level of domestic Nigerian football. It is fed into by the two First Division groups: the Nigerian Division 1-A and Nigerian Division 1-B. It is organized by the Nigeria Football Association. The NPL Chairman is Davidson Owunmi.- History :The league was...
champions Kano Pillars
Kano Pillars F.C.
Kano Pillars Football Club is a Nigerian football club based in Kano. They play in the top division in Nigerian football, the Nigerian Premier League. Their home stadium is Sani Abacha Stadium. Kano Pillars FC was founded in the year 1990, the year professional league was started in Nigeria...
, Conference South
Conference South
Conference South is one of the second divisions of the Football Conference in England, taking its place immediately below the Conference National...
side Havant & Waterlooville
Havant & Waterlooville F.C.
Havant & Waterlooville Football Club are an English football club based in Havant, Hampshire. The club formed in 1998 after a merger between Havant Town and Waterlooville, and are currently members of the Conference South. Nicknamed The Hawks, they play at West Leigh Park.-History:In 1998 Havant...
, and Southern Football League Division One South & West side Gosport Borough
Gosport Borough F.C.
Gosport Borough Football Club are a semi-professional football club based in Gosport, England currently playing in the Southern League Division One South and West...
.
However, Sahar was forced to endure yet another unsuccessful loan spell. Despite being involved in many of Portsmouth's pre-season matches, Sahar did not play once for Portsmouth; he was an unused substitute in three of their matches. “If I had played a few games and they said I wasn’t good enough, then fine. But the fact is that I haven’t been given that chance to shine,” Sahar said of his disappointment at not being given one opportunity to prove himself.
De Graafschap
Sahar joined EredivisieEredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
side De Graafschap
De Graafschap
De Graafschap is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the "De Vijverberg" stadium. Their current home ground stands on where the old pitch used to be located and was opened on 12 August 2000...
on loan on 2 January 2009. He played for De Graafschap until the end of the season. He played his first match for De Graafschap in a friendly against Turkish club Sivasspor
Sivasspor
Sivasspor is a Turkish sports club based in Sivas, Turkey formed in the year 1967. They play in the Turkish Süper Lig. Their manager is currently Riza Calimbay. They finished 15th in the 2010–11 Süper Lig. Their current captain is Hayrettin Yerlikaya....
. He scored his first two goals for De Graafschap in a friendly match against Belgian team K.V. Mechelen. He scored his first goal in the Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
on 17 January 2009 in his debut match, against Willem II. After only 17 minutes, Sahar received a pass from Luuk de Jong
Luuk de Jong
Luuk de Jong is a Dutch footballer, currently playing for Eredivisie side FC Twente.-Early life:Born in Aigle, Switzerland, a son of two volleyball players who played professionally in that country. Luuk de Jong moved to the Netherlands when he was 4-years old. Luuk does not remember anything of...
and then curled the shot into the top corner, after passing a defender in the 18 yards (16.5 m) box. His second goal came in an away game against fellow relegation strugglers, Roda JC. His third goal for De Graafschap came in a home game against SC Heerenveen. In this game, he finished well to score the game's first goal with his left foot, after good play from Luuk de Jong. His fourth and fifth goals came in the home game against NEC Nijmegen. Sahar scored a penalty for the opening goal after missing an earlier penalty attempt. He scored his second goal of the match with a close range strike. This match finished in a 2–2 draw. De Graafschap finished second-bottom in the 2008–09 Eredivisie. This meant that they would have to participate in play-offs with teams from the Dutch second division in order to retain their place in the Eredivisie. In their first play-off match against MVV Maastricht
MVV Maastricht
MVV Maastricht is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Maastricht, founded on April 2, 1902...
, Sahar scored a goal within 60 seconds of the match's commencement to set up a 3–2 away win for De Graafschap.
Sahar finished with five goals and one assist in 16 appearances for De Graafschap in the 2008–09 Eredivise, and in the relegation playoffs he scored one goal and made two assists in six games, making of a total of six goals and three assists in 22 games.
Espanyol
Sahar moved to EspanyolRCD Espanyol
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona is a sports club based in Barcelona, Spain. It is best known for its football team. Espanyol currently play in the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat with seats for 40,500 spectators. It was inaugurated on 2 August 2009...
for a fee of £1million on a four-year deal, after leaving Stamford Bridge
Stamford Bridge (stadium)
Stamford Bridge is a football stadium in Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London, and is the home of Chelsea Football Club. The stadium is located within the Moore Park Estate also known as Walham Green and is often referred to as simply The Bridge...
in the summer of 2009. He was presented with the number 14 jersey. On 2 August 2009, Sahar scored two goals in a friendly match against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
as a substitute, also picking up the man-of-the-match award in a 3–0 win. These were the second and third goals of the match, scored at the club's inaugural match at their new stadium, the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat. Sahar scored his first league goal for Espanyol on 23 September 2009, with a header in a 2–1 victory over Málaga
Málaga CF
Málaga Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Málaga, Andalusia. The team currently plays in Spain's La Liga.Málaga CF is generally seen as the successor to CD Málaga, one of the most historical Andalusian football clubs, by being a near-identical looking football club that even shares...
; also his club's first goal at the stadium in a competitive match.
Hapoel Tel Aviv
Despite the objections of his agent, Ronen Katzav, on 20 July 2010, Sahar joined to his youth club Hapoel Tel Aviv on a one year loan. Hapoel Tel Aviv also purchased the rights for 10% of a future sell for £100,000. Sahar scored his first goal for Hapoel Tel Aviv against FK Aktobe from Kazakhstan, in the 2010-11 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, after a pass from Itay ShechterItay Shechter
Itay Menachem Shechter is an Israeli footballer currently playing for 1. FC Kaiserslautern.-Career:Shechter started his career in Hapoel Haifa youth team where in 1999-00 he won the Israeli Youth Cup being 13 years old....
and scored in the final qualifying round in the away leg versus Red Bull Salzburg.
Sahar found great difficulty scoring in the Liga Al upon arrival. Assistant manager, Yossi Abuksis attributed this to a mental difficulty that Sahar created for himself. Sahar came back to Israel as a superstar and the pressures that came with this status were difficult to bear at the start of the season. When Itay Shechter went out with an injury midseason, Sahar capitalized on the increased playing time to create a striking partnership with Toto Tamuz
Toto Tamuz
Toto Adaruns Tamuz Temile , known simply as Toto Tamuz is a Nigerian-born Israeli footballer who plays for Hapoel Tel Aviv.-Early life:...
.
Auxerre
On 4 July 2011, Sahar joined Ligue 1Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
side Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
on a one year loan.auxerre also keep an option to buy the player for a fee of 1.5 million euros
International career
On 7 October 2006, Sahar made his debut for the Israel U-21sIsrael national under-21 football team
Israel's national Under-21 team , also known as Israel Under-21s or Israel U-21s, is considered to be the feeder team for the Israel national football team...
in a playoff against France
France national under-21 football team
The France national under-21 football team , known in France as Les Espoirs , is the national under-21 football team of France and is controlled by the French Football Federation. The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, held every two years...
– scoring Israel's goal in the away leg which ended 1–1, on the way to Israel's shock qualification to UEFA U-21 Championship 2007 with a 2–1 aggregate win.
On 7 February 2007, at the age of 17-and-a-half, Sahar became the youngest player to ever play for the Israel national football team
Israel national football team
The Israel national football team is the national football team of Israel, controlled by the Israel Football Association .Israel National Football is the direct successor of the Eretz Yisrael National Team during British Mandate...
, in a friendly match against Ukraine
Ukraine national football team
The Ukraine national football team is the national football team of Ukraine and is controlled by the Football Federation of Ukraine. After Ukrainian Independence and breakaway from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Hungary on 29 April 1992...
(a feat since surpassed by Gai Assulin
Gai Assulin
Gai Yigaal Assulin is an Israeli professional footballer who plays for Manchester City and the Israel national under-21 football team, mainly as a winger or attacking midfielder...
). In doing so, he became Chelsea's youngest player to earn an international cap. He earned his second cap against England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
on 24 March 2007, coming on as a substitute in the 69th minute. Sahar became the youngest player to score for the Israel national football team in his third appearance with the team on 28 March 2007, scoring two goals against Estonia
Estonia national football team
The Estonia national football team represents Estonia in international association football. Team members are selected by the head coach of Estonian Football Association . Estonia play their home matches at the A. Le Coq Arena in Tallinn, Estonia....
as a substitute in Israel's 4–0 win. This was the youngest international goal scored by a Chelsea player. Sahar scored his third international goal on 6 September 2008, with an equaliser in the 90th minute against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
in a 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
qualifier, following up with his fourth and fifth international goals a year later in the 2010 World Cup qualifier
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 2
The 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group 2 was a UEFA qualifying group for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The group comprised Greece, Israel, Switzerland, Moldova, Latvia and Luxembourg....
against Luxembourg
Luxembourg national football team
The Luxembourg national football team is the national football team of Luxembourg, and is controlled by the Luxembourg Football Federation. The team play most of their home matches at the Stade Josy Barthel, in Luxembourg.- History :...
on 9 September 2009.
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 March 2007 | Ramat Gan Stadium, Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... |
3–0 | 4–0 | Euro 2008 qualifier | |
| 2 | 4–0 | |||||
| 3 | 6 September 2008 | Ramat Gan Stadium, Israel | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2010 World Cup qualifier | |
| 4 | 9 September 2009 | Ramat Gan Stadium, Israel | 6–0 | 7–0 | 2010 World Cup qualifier | |
| 5 | 7–0 |
Military
As an Israeli citizen, Sahar was due to return back to Israel for a three-year spell of national service. However, Israeli law makers were working on a legislation (nicknamed "The Ben Sahar Law") that would have allowed Sahar to complete a civil service term in Britain instead. The law did not pass and as a result, Sahar was drafted into the IDFIsrael Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
. Under the terms of his military service, he will go to his base every time he is on vacation in Israel.
See also
- List of select Jewish football (association; soccer) players