Hapoel Jerusalem's newest signing says the welcome he received at Teddy Stadium has already told him he made the right call. "I feel blessed to be here. The reception from teammates, coaches and staff was amazing," Sharani Zuberu told ONE this week, days after putting pen to paper with the Ligat ha'Al club.

The 26-year-old Ghanaian-Togolese defender joined Hapoel Jerusalem on a free transfer on August 13, arriving with an unusually decorated resume for an Israeli top-flight newcomer: four consecutive Slovak championships won with Slovan Bratislava.

Zuberu's route to Jerusalem began far from Central Europe. Born in Accra, he started his career at Dreams FC in Ghana before Sparta Prague brought him to their academy in 2018. "I arrived from Ghana to Sparta Prague youth in 2018. I scored a brace in a derby against Slavia," he recalled, pointing to one of the early highlights of his development in Czech football.

After struggling to break into Sparta's first team, he moved on to Dunajská Streda in 2019 before signing for Slovan Bratislava in February 2023 — the move that turned his career around. Over four seasons in Bratislava he made 93 appearances, scoring six goals and adding two assists, while collecting a league title in every one of those campaigns.

He describes himself as a versatile operator rather than a specialist. Deployed mostly at left-back but also used on both flanks and even up front by Slovan, he said: "I am good with the ball, in 1v1, and using available space."

Slovan's dominance at home came with continental exposure that few Israeli-league arrivals can match. Zuberu played through the club's Champions League league-phase campaign, facing Manchester City and a Bayern Munich side built around Harry Kane. "My first Champions League match with Bratislava against Manchester City, I'll always remember it," he said, adding of the Bayern and Atlético Madrid fixtures: "They were amazing in terms of competition quality."

That is the experience Hapoel Jerusalem hope to fold into a Ligat ha'Al squad they are rebuilding around this season. The club shares Teddy Stadium with city rivals Beitar Jerusalem and will be looking to Zuberu's European pedigree to add steel on the flank.

For his part, the defender was clear about what drew him to Israel. "To fulfill myself here, show my best abilities. Compete with the top Israeli teams," he said of his ambitions for the new chapter, with Hapoel Jerusalem preparing to open their 2026/27 Ligat ha'Al campaign later this month.