Dolev Haziza didn't expect this summer to end with him leaving Maccabi Haifa. Seven years, three league titles and the captain's armband later, the winger has signed for Maccabi Netanya instead — a move his own agent describes as one he never saw coming.
Speaking to ONE, agent Ronen Katzav said Haziza believed he would finish his career at Haifa. "It's not a regular event when such a significant player leaves before his contract ends," Katzav said, adding that Haziza "thought he would finish his career there, but we need to move forward."
Katzav said there had been several offers on the table, from clubs in Greece as well as in Israel, but that Netanya emerged as "the most interesting and suitable club" for his client. According to ONE, Haziza was caught off guard by how the exit played out and may yet address the situation himself in the coming days.
The move traces back to a squad clear-out overseen by Lior Refaelov, the former Haifa captain and Israel international who was elevated to sporting director at the club this year. Refaelov held individual conversations with several first-team players this summer informing them they were not part of the club's plans for the coming season — Haziza among them, according to Israeli reporting.
Given his standing at the club, Haziza was reportedly given a rare exception: he continued training with Haifa's first team while a new destination was found, rather than being frozen out immediately.
His Haifa career, which began in 2019 after a move from Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, coincided with arguably the most successful spell in the club's modern history — three consecutive Israeli championships, with Haziza wearing the captain's armband. Last season alone he contributed nine goals and two assists, according to Sport5.
He has also become a fixture for the Israel national team, winning 18 caps since making his debut in November 2019.
At Netanya, Haziza has signed a two-year contract running to the summer of 2028, on a reported salary of $250,000 a season, Sport5 reported. Walla Sport reported separately that Maccabi Haifa is contributing roughly 400,000 shekels toward his outstanding contract as compensation for releasing him early.
Netanya's coaching staff said they were struck by the winger's hunger to open a new chapter and lead a Premier League squad, according to Sport5's report on the signing.
Maccabi Haifa, for its part, described Haziza in a statement as a symbol of "passion, dedication, leadership and genuine connection to the club" — even as head coach Barak Bakhar voiced his own frustration at a press conference over how the exit had been handled, a sign the parting was not entirely amicable despite the warm words.
For Haziza, 31, the switch to Netanya's yellow and black marks the first time since 2019 that he will not be playing in Haifa's green — closing one of the more decorated individual runs of the current Israeli Premier League era, and opening an uncertain new one.
