Ran Kozuk is weighing changes to his Hapoel Beer Sheva starting eleven for Wednesday's Champions League second qualifying round return leg against Vikingur Reykjavik, with the Israeli champions needing to overturn a first-leg deficit to keep their European campaign alive.
Beer Sheva lost the opening leg 2-1 in Reykjavik last week. Kings Kangwa pulled a goal back for the visitors, but two second-half strikes from the Icelandic champions left Kozuk's side with work to do heading into the second leg.
Because Hapoel Beer Sheva cannot currently stage UEFA competition matches at Turner Stadium, the return fixture has been moved to Szombathely in Hungary, the venue that has become the club's de facto home ground for European nights.
According to ONE, this week's training sessions have pushed Kozuk toward using Zahi Ahmed and Javon East in place of Mohamed Abu Romi and Amir Ganah in the starting lineup, based on what the coaching staff have seen on the training pitch.
Niv Yehoshua is expected to keep his place in the side, while Matan Baltaxa, who is working back from a mild concussion, is being considered either at left-back or in central defence, the report said.
Before any talk of personnel, though, ONE reported that the coaching staff have stressed to the squad that the real shift needs to come in the players' approach — that this is a Champions League tie and Beer Sheva must play with far greater intensity than they showed in Iceland.
That message echoes what Sport5 reported from inside the camp: after a tactical debriefing following the first leg, Kozuk held individual conversations with several players before turning to the training ground, where he deliberately avoided running a full XI in practice — sticking to small-sided scrimmages instead — so as not to tip off the starting lineup while training on the actual matchday pitch.
There is squad business unfolding in parallel. ONE reported that Pedro Amador, set to join as a new left-back, was undergoing medical evaluations in Israel, with a note of concern over an Achilles tendon issue before his signing could be finalised. Walla Sport has since reported the move as agreed, with Amador expected to land in Israel shortly.
For Kozuk, Wednesday is as much about mentality as selection. A repeat of the passive display in Reykjavik would end Beer Sheva's hopes of advancing in Europe; a response built on intensity, he and his staff believe, is what gives them a chance of erasing the aggregate deficit on home — if borrowed — turf.
