Idan Tal

Idan Tal

Tal in 2006
Personal information
Date of birth	(1975-09-13) 13 September 1975
Place of birth	Beersheba, Israel
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Hapoel Jerusalem
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1994–1996	Hapoel Jerusalem	2	(0)
1997–1998	Maccabi Petah Tikva	71	(10)
1998–2000	Hapoel Tel Aviv	14	(2)
1999–2000	→ Mérida (loan)	36	(5)
2000	Maccabi Petah Tikva	7	(1)
2000–2002	Everton	29	(2)
2003	Rayo Vallecano	6	(0)
2003–2006	Maccabi Haifa	109	(30)
2006–2007	Bolton Wanderers	16	(0)
2007–2011	Beitar Jerusalem	122	(16)
2011–2013	Hapoel Jerusalem	53	(3)
Total		465	(69)
International career
1995–1997	Israel U21	13	(2)
1998–2007	Israel	69	(5)
Managerial career
2013	Hapoel Jerusalem
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Idan Tal (Hebrew: עידן טל; born 13 September 1975) is an Israeli former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

Early life

Tal was born in Beersheba, Israel, and is Jewish. He lives in Haifa, is married to Doreen, and has two children, Miron and Amit.

Club career

Tal started his career at Hapoel Jerusalem FC, moving to Maccabi Petah Tikva midway through the 1996–97 season. He joined his next club, Hapoel Tel Aviv, in the same period of 1998–99, winning the Israel State Cup with the side (its first title in 11 years).

In 1999–2000 Tal represented CP Mérida in Spain. Even though the Extremadura team finished in sixth position in the second division, it would be relegated due to irregularities, and he returned to Maccabi Petah Tikva, playing a handful of games before changing teams – and countries – again, as he signed with Everton in October 2000, appearing sparingly over the course of two 1/2 seasons.

In January 2003 Tal was released and returned to Spain, joining La Liga side Rayo Vallecano and suffering another relegation, this time on the pitch. In the summer, he signed for Maccabi Haifa.

On 9 November 2005, Tal received French citizenship, a process that took him five years to complete: his eligibility came through his wife Doreen, of French descent. The fact that he had acquired a European passport, along with his contract with Maccabi being due to expire at the end of the season, allowed him to renegotiate a return to Europe on a free transfer, where he would not count as a foreign player. In July 2006 he left the national champions to return to England, signing with Bolton Wanderers and sharing teams with compatriot Tal Ben Haim.

During his sole season, as Bolton qualified for the UEFA Cup as seventh, Tal appeared almost exclusively from the bench (12 out of his 16 Premier League appearances). He scored once, against Doncaster Rovers for the season's FA Cup. In July 2007, at nearly 32, he was sold to Beitar Jerusalem, signing a three-year contract worth £246,000.

Tal returned to Hapoel Jerusalem in July 2011, agreeing to a three-year deal with the second level outfit. On 26 October 2011, he revealed that, although he had signed a long-term contract, he would retire at the end of the season if he did not achieve promotion to the top flight, which eventually happened yet Tal continued to play for Hapoel. In April of the following year he was given a US$2000 fine and a month-long suspension by the club, after an argument with Hapoel manager Michael Kadosh.

International career

Tal earned 69 caps for the Israel national team during nine years, scoring five goals.

Managerial career

On 30 June 2013, Tal was appointed the manager of Hapoel Jerusalem. In December he left the job due to poor results.

Managerial statistics

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	Win %
Hapoel Jerusalem		30 June 2013	4 December 2013	13	3	5	5	023.08
Total				13	3	5	5	023.08

Honours

• Israeli League: 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08
• Israeli Cup: 1998–99, 2007–08, 2008–09
• Toto Cup: 2005–06, 2009–10

Individual

• Israeli Player of the Year: 2004–05

External links

• Idan Tal at BDFutbol
• Idan Tal at Soccerbase
• Idan Tal at National-Football-Teams.com