Tamir Cohen
Encyclopedia
Tamir Cohen is an Israel
i football midfielder
who plays for Maccabi Haifa
. He is the son of the late Maccabi Tel Aviv and Liverpool
player Avi Cohen
.
, when he came on as a substitute. He scored his first goal against Maccabi Petah Tikva in a 2–1 in the Toto Cup
, where he scored the winning goal.
On 11 January 2007 Cohen moved to Maccabi Netanya
.
for a fee of £39,000. He made his Bolton debut in the 1–0 FA Cup
defeat to Sheffield United
, wearing the squad number 25, previously occupied by Abdoulaye Faye
. His first Premiership goal was scored on 2 March 2008 in a match against his father's former club Liverpool at the Reebok stadium, which ended in a 3–1 win for Liverpool.
The 25-year-old made 11 appearances in his first season in English football.
In the 2008/2009 campaign, Cohen played a peripheral role for Bolton Wanderers this campaign with a longstanding thigh injury keeping him out of action for over five months. The Israeli man eventually returned to the first team fold in the final couple of months of the season, earning his first start against Aston Villa
at the Reebok Stadium on 25 April. Cohen stole all the headlines with a vibrant midfield performance and capped off the afternoon with a neatly taken equaliser to earn Bolton a vital point. He celebrated his goal by saluting his friends and family who were sat in the West Stand after he had been handed a 'lucky shekel' to put down his sock. Cohen expressed hope that his injury problems would be behind him and that Wanderers fans would see more of his footballing talents in the 2009/2010, saying "It's been very frustrating because it's not easy for a football player to be injured. But that is football and you need to live with that. Now hopefully I won't be out anymore while I'm with Bolton".
Cohen was released by Bolton Wanderers at the end of the 2010–11 season, after three and a half years at the club.
. He rejected an offer from Greek side Panathinaikos
in order to play in Israel
where he can be closer to his family. Tamir is earning €300,000, the highest salary in Maccabi Haifa
.
. His first appearance on the U-21 team was on the losing side to Cyprus
.
He played for the Israel national football team
against Croatia
on 13 October 2007.
i-born Cohen also holds an Italian passport
owing to his Italian
ancestry. His citizenship of a European Union
country gives him the option of playing for an EU football club without having to be classified as a foreigner.
He is the son of Maccabi Tel Aviv and Liverpool
player Avi Cohen
. Following his father's ultimately fatal motorcycle accident in December 2010, he flew to Israel to be at his father's bedside. On 24 April 2011, Cohen emotionally celebrated by taking off his shirt to reveal a picture of his father after scoring the winning goal in Bolton's 2-1 victory over Arsenal
.
Cohen is also the nephew of the former association football player Vicky Peretz
and the cousin
of Peretz sons – Adi and Omer Peretz
.
|2002–2003||rowspan="5"|Maccabi Tel Aviv||rowspan="7"|Israeli Premier League||13||0||3||0||9||0||0||0||25||0
|-
|2003–2004||27||2||2||1||5||0||1||0||35||3
|-
|2004–2005||22||2||4||0||1||0||9||0||36||2
|-
|2005–2006||16||0||0||0||8||0||2||0||26||0
|-
|2006–2007||3||0||0||0||5||0||0||0||8||0
|-
|2006–2007||rowspan="2"|Maccabi Netanya||14||1||1||0||2||0||0||0||17||1
|-
|2007–2008||13||1||0||0||2||0||2||0||17||1
108||6||10||1||32||0||14||0||164||7
|-
|-
|2007–2008||rowspan="4"|Bolton Wanderers
||rowspan="4"|Premier League||10||1||1||0||0||0||0||0||11||1
|-
|2008–2009||4||1||0||0||0||0||0||0||4||1
|-
|2009–2010||27||3||4||0||1||0||0||0||32||3
|-
|2010–2011||8||1||2||0||1||0||0||0||11||1
49||6||7||0||2||0||0||0||58||6
157||12||17||1||34||0||14||0||222||13
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i football midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
who plays for Maccabi Haifa
Maccabi Haifa F.C.
Maccabi Haifa Football Club is an Israeli football team from the city of Haifa, a section of Maccabi Haifa sports club. The club has won 12 championships, 5 State Cups and 4 Toto Cups...
. He is the son of the late Maccabi Tel Aviv and 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...
player Avi Cohen
Avi Cohen
Avraham "Avi" Cohen was an Israeli footballer who played as a defender. He was best known for his spell playing for Liverpool in England. After retirement from active football and management, he was the chairman of the Israel Professional Footballers Association for over five years until he was...
.
Early career
Cohen started his career in Maccabi Tel Aviv's youth team where in 2001–02 he won the double. His first game in the Israeli Premier League was in November 2002 during Maccabi's 1–0 win over Bnei Yehuda Tel AvivBnei Yehuda Tel Aviv
Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv F.C. , commonly known as just Bnei Yehuda, is an Israeli football club from the Hatikva Quarter of Tel Aviv. The club is currently a member of the Israeli Premier League and plays its home matches at Bloomfield Stadium.-History:...
, when he came on as a substitute. He scored his first goal against Maccabi Petah Tikva in a 2–1 in the Toto Cup
Toto Cup
The Toto Cup is an association football tournament that exists separately in the two highest divisions in Israel: the Premier League and Liga Leumit....
, where he scored the winning goal.
On 11 January 2007 Cohen moved to Maccabi Netanya
Maccabi Netanya
Maccabi Netanya F.C. is an Israeli football club based in Netanya. Established in 1934, the club were founding members of the Israeli League in 1949. After winning their first championship in 1970, the club's golden period lasted until the late 1980s, including four more league titles and a double...
.
Bolton Wanderers
On 1 January 2008 he transferred to English club Bolton WanderersBolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....
for a fee of £39,000. He made his Bolton debut in the 1–0 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...
defeat to Sheffield United
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...
, wearing the squad number 25, previously occupied by Abdoulaye Faye
Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye
Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye , more commonly known as Abdoulaye Faye, is a Senegalese footballer who plays for Championship club West Ham United...
. His first Premiership goal was scored on 2 March 2008 in a match against his father's former club Liverpool at the Reebok stadium, which ended in a 3–1 win for Liverpool.
The 25-year-old made 11 appearances in his first season in English football.
In the 2008/2009 campaign, Cohen played a peripheral role for Bolton Wanderers this campaign with a longstanding thigh injury keeping him out of action for over five months. The Israeli man eventually returned to the first team fold in the final couple of months of the season, earning his first start against Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
at the Reebok Stadium on 25 April. Cohen stole all the headlines with a vibrant midfield performance and capped off the afternoon with a neatly taken equaliser to earn Bolton a vital point. He celebrated his goal by saluting his friends and family who were sat in the West Stand after he had been handed a 'lucky shekel' to put down his sock. Cohen expressed hope that his injury problems would be behind him and that Wanderers fans would see more of his footballing talents in the 2009/2010, saying "It's been very frustrating because it's not easy for a football player to be injured. But that is football and you need to live with that. Now hopefully I won't be out anymore while I'm with Bolton".
Cohen was released by Bolton Wanderers at the end of the 2010–11 season, after three and a half years at the club.
Maccabi Haifa
On 8 August 2011, Cohen signed a 4-year deal with Israeli giants Maccabi HaifaMaccabi Haifa F.C.
Maccabi Haifa Football Club is an Israeli football team from the city of Haifa, a section of Maccabi Haifa sports club. The club has won 12 championships, 5 State Cups and 4 Toto Cups...
. He rejected an offer from Greek side Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Athens. Founded in 1908, they play in the Super League Greece and are one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Greek football history. They have won 20 Greek Championships and 17 Greek Cups.Panathinaikos is the most...
in order to play in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
where he can be closer to his family. Tamir is earning €300,000, the highest salary in Maccabi Haifa
Maccabi Haifa F.C.
Maccabi Haifa Football Club is an Israeli football team from the city of Haifa, a section of Maccabi Haifa sports club. The club has won 12 championships, 5 State Cups and 4 Toto Cups...
.
International career
Cohen made 7 appearances for the Israel national under-21 football teamIsrael 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...
. His first appearance on the U-21 team was on the losing side to Cyprus
Cyprus national under-21 football team
The Cyprus national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team for Cyprus and like the senior team, is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association....
.
He played 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...
against Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
on 13 October 2007.
Personal life
IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i-born Cohen also holds an Italian passport
Italian passport
Italian passports are issued to Italian citizens to travel outside of Italy. For travelling within the European Union, Italian citizens can use their ID card. Biometric passports have been available since October 26, 2006. They are valid for a period of 10 years and they cost €42.50...
owing to his Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
ancestry. His citizenship of a European Union
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...
country gives him the option of playing for an EU football club without having to be classified as a foreigner.
He is the son of Maccabi Tel Aviv and 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...
player Avi Cohen
Avi Cohen
Avraham "Avi" Cohen was an Israeli footballer who played as a defender. He was best known for his spell playing for Liverpool in England. After retirement from active football and management, he was the chairman of the Israel Professional Footballers Association for over five years until he was...
. Following his father's ultimately fatal motorcycle accident in December 2010, he flew to Israel to be at his father's bedside. On 24 April 2011, Cohen emotionally celebrated by taking off his shirt to reveal a picture of his father after scoring the winning goal in Bolton's 2-1 victory over Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
.
Cohen is also the nephew of the former association football player Vicky Peretz
Vicky Peretz
Yitzhak "Vicky" Peretz is a former Israeli international footballer and currently acts as a manager.-Playing career:Peretz was the leading scorer of the Israel national under-19 football team that competed at the 1972 AFC Youth Championship...
and the cousin
Cousin
In kinship terminology, a cousin is a relative with whom one shares one or more common ancestors. The term is rarely used when referring to a relative in one's immediate family where there is a more specific term . The term "blood relative" can be used synonymously and establishes the existence of...
of Peretz sons – Adi and Omer Peretz
Omer Peretz
Omer Peretz is an Israeli footballer who currently plays at Sektzia Nes Tziona in Liga Leumit. His father, Vicky, was also a footballer in Israel as was his uncle, Avi Cohen and his cousin Tamir Cohen.-Footnotes:...
.
Career statistics
|-|2002–2003||rowspan="5"|Maccabi Tel Aviv||rowspan="7"|Israeli Premier League||13||0||3||0||9||0||0||0||25||0
|-
|2003–2004||27||2||2||1||5||0||1||0||35||3
|-
|2004–2005||22||2||4||0||1||0||9||0||36||2
|-
|2005–2006||16||0||0||0||8||0||2||0||26||0
|-
|2006–2007||3||0||0||0||5||0||0||0||8||0
|-
|2006–2007||rowspan="2"|Maccabi Netanya||14||1||1||0||2||0||0||0||17||1
|-
|2007–2008||13||1||0||0||2||0||2||0||17||1
108||6||10||1||32||0||14||0||164||7
|-
|-
|2007–2008||rowspan="4"|Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....
||rowspan="4"|Premier League||10||1||1||0||0||0||0||0||11||1
|-
|2008–2009||4||1||0||0||0||0||0||0||4||1
|-
|2009–2010||27||3||4||0||1||0||0||0||32||3
|-
|2010–2011||8||1||2||0||1||0||0||0||11||1
49||6||7||0||2||0||0||0||58||6
157||12||17||1||34||0||14||0||222||13
Honours
- Israeli Premier League (1):
- 2002–03
- State CupIsrael State CupThe State Cup , is a knockout cup competition in Israeli football, run by the Israeli Football Association.The State Cup was first held in 1927–28 as the Palestine Cup...
(1):- 2004–05
See also
- List of select Jewish football (association; soccer) players