Pini Balili , is an
IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
i-
TurkishThe Turkish people , also known as the "Turks" are defined mainly as citizens of the Republic of Turkey. An early historic text provided the definition of being a Turk as "any individual within the Republic of Turkey; whatever his/her faith or racial/ethnic background; who speaks Turkish, grows up...
footballAssociation football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players using a spherical ball...
player currently at
AntalyasporAntalyaspor is a football club based in Antalya, Turkey and play their home matches at Antalya Atatürk Stadium. They are currently playing in Turkcell Super League, the top tier football league in Turkey.- History :...
in
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
.
As a youngster, Balili grew up supporting
Hapoel Tel AvivHapoel Tel Aviv Football Club is an Israeli football club based in Tel Aviv. The club currently competes in the Israeli Premier League and plays its home matches at the Bloomfield Stadium...
and was part of the youth system there before moving to
Shimshon Tel AvivShimshon Tel Aviv F.C. was an Israeli football club based at the Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa. In 2000 it merged with Beitar Tel Aviv to create Beitar Shimshon Tel Aviv.-History:...
in his teens. It wasn't long before he caught the eye of Hapoel scouts who saw Balili as a missed opportunity so the club purchased his contract after just one professional season. His breakout did not come until the
Dror KashtanDror Kashtan is an Israeli football manager and currently the manager of the Israeli national football team.-Early life and managerial career:...
era at
Hapoel Tel AvivHapoel Tel Aviv Football Club is an Israeli football club based in Tel Aviv. The club currently competes in the Israeli Premier League and plays its home matches at the Bloomfield Stadium...
.
Pini Balili , is an
IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
i-
TurkishThe Turkish people , also known as the "Turks" are defined mainly as citizens of the Republic of Turkey. An early historic text provided the definition of being a Turk as "any individual within the Republic of Turkey; whatever his/her faith or racial/ethnic background; who speaks Turkish, grows up...
footballAssociation football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players using a spherical ball...
player currently at
AntalyasporAntalyaspor is a football club based in Antalya, Turkey and play their home matches at Antalya Atatürk Stadium. They are currently playing in Turkcell Super League, the top tier football league in Turkey.- History :...
in
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
.
Move back to Hapoel
As a youngster, Balili grew up supporting
Hapoel Tel AvivHapoel Tel Aviv Football Club is an Israeli football club based in Tel Aviv. The club currently competes in the Israeli Premier League and plays its home matches at the Bloomfield Stadium...
and was part of the youth system there before moving to
Shimshon Tel AvivShimshon Tel Aviv F.C. was an Israeli football club based at the Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa. In 2000 it merged with Beitar Tel Aviv to create Beitar Shimshon Tel Aviv.-History:...
in his teens. It wasn't long before he caught the eye of Hapoel scouts who saw Balili as a missed opportunity so the club purchased his contract after just one professional season. His breakout did not come until the
Dror KashtanDror Kashtan is an Israeli football manager and currently the manager of the Israeli national football team.-Early life and managerial career:...
era at
Hapoel Tel AvivHapoel Tel Aviv Football Club is an Israeli football club based in Tel Aviv. The club currently competes in the Israeli Premier League and plays its home matches at the Bloomfield Stadium...
. Instrumental in the clubs success in the
UEFA CupThe UEFA Europa League is a competition for eligible European football clubs; the second most prestigious European football contest after the UEFA Champions League. It is an annual football cup competition for European club teams organised by the Union of European Football Associations...
, Balili found himself featuring for the national team as well. After the 2002-03 season, Hapoel decided to cut wages and Pini left for
TurkishTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
club Istanbulspor.
Time in Turkey
Financial troubles at Istanbulspor led to Balili being let go after just one season. Though he immediately signed with newly promoted
KayserisporKayserispor, is a Turkish sports club based in Kayseri. Founded in 1966, they are currently playing in the Turkish Super League. This team's previous name was Kayseri Erciyesspor before switching names with another club on July 9, 2004.- Early years :...
. In 2006,
SivassporSivasspor is a Turkish sports club based in Sivas, Turkey. They play in the Turkcell Süper Lig.-History:Sivasspor were originally formed on May 14, 1932 in Sivas as Sivas Gençlik. They sported Kırmızı-Beyaz shirts and Beyaz shorts. They played many matches at the amateur level in their early...
applied for Turkish citizenship for Balili stating that he is a model citizen in Turkey and has full grasp of the Turkish language.
A somewhat religious man, rumors were started that a league match between
SivassporSivasspor is a Turkish sports club based in Sivas, Turkey. They play in the Turkcell Süper Lig.-History:Sivasspor were originally formed on May 14, 1932 in Sivas as Sivas Gençlik. They sported Kırmızı-Beyaz shirts and Beyaz shorts. They played many matches at the amateur level in their early...
and Ankaraspor, was postponed during the 2006-07 on account of it coinciding with
Yom KippurYom Kippur , also known as the Day of Forgiveness, is the holiest day of the year for religious Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services...
. The
Turkish Football FederationThe Turkish Football Federation , also called the Turkish Football Association, is the governing body of football in Turkey. It was formed on 23 April 1923. It organizes the Turkish national teams and the Turkish football league...
denied these claims. The story garnered some press coverage, namely because Israeli goalkeeper,
Dudu AouateDavid "Dudu" Aouate is an Israeli footballer currently playing for RCD Mallorca in Spain, as a goalkeeper.-Club career:...
claimed that he was willing to play on the Jewish day of atonement.
On 12 August 2007 Balili was viciously tackled by
TrabzonsporTrabzonspor is a Turkish football club, from the Black Sea port city of Trabzon playing in the Süper Lig.Trabzonspor was formed in 1967 by a merger of four local clubs. Many of the players from these constituent teams became part of the Trabzonspor side that succeeded in winning promotion to the...
's
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
ian defensive midfielder,
Ayman AbdelazizAyman Mohamed Abdelaziz is an Egyptian football player. He currently plays as a midfielder for El Zamalek in the Egyptian Premier League. He is a very talented midfielder who has been out of Egypt for a very long time. Zamalek has been trying to get him back for a very long time. On June 10, 2008...
. Allegedly, Ayman swore at Balili in
ArabicArabic is a Central Semitic language, thus related to and classified alongside other Semitic languages such as Hebrew and the Neo-Aramaic languages. In terms of speakers, the Arabic macrolanguage is the largest member of the Semitic language family. It is spoken by more than 280 million people as...
before the tackle and it caused the Sivasspor players to fight with the Trabzonspor players. A spectator then jumped onto the pitch and threw punches. Sivasspor players responded and after that Trabzonspor supporters raided the pitch and the match was stopped.
He transferred to
AntalyasporAntalyaspor is a football club based in Antalya, Turkey and play their home matches at Antalya Atatürk Stadium. They are currently playing in Turkcell Super League, the top tier football league in Turkey.- History :...
for 2009-10 season.
Honours
- Israeli Premier League (1):
- Israel State Cup
The 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...
(2):
- Toto Cup
The Toto Cup is a minor cup competition in Israeli football, but nevertheless carries the highest annual prize. In 2006, it was worth 1.25 million Israeli new shekels.
...
(1):
External links