Israel’s Forgotten Son: Sivasspor’s Balili

Ozzy Neav

Football enigma and Israeli bad boy, Pini Balili is perhaps the most controversial player ever to come out of Hapoel Tel Aviv. If one were to walk the streets of Israel’s business and cultural hub, passers by would probably raise an indifferent eyebrow at mention of the Sivasspor striker.

Pinhas Felix Balili started his Football career at the prestigious Hapoel Tel Aviv youth academy. Though he did have an uneventful stint in Shimshon Tel Aviv early on, for all intents and purposes, his professional career began at Hapoel; the only Israeli side he has ever played for. As far as team success, he was an integral part of the Hapoel glory years, which saw the team win the domestic title in the 1990-2000 season. Balili however, never seemed to generate the same amount of star power as other Hapoel players. (Gershon, Abuksis and Tuama to name a few.) His tenure with Hapoel came to an abrupt end at the climax of the 2003 campaign. With Hapoel knee deep in the mud of financial hardship, Balili found a surprising and unconventional home in Turkish side Istanbulspor.

The following year he found employment with Kayserispor and then finally settling in Sivasspor where he has played for the last two and a half seasons. While Sivasspor has retained Balili’s services until the conclusion of the following season, the rumblings in the Turkish League have him travelling yet again. Many believe that he will journey to Istanbul, to play for Turkish giants, Besiktas. While he may retain some celebrity status, his fame has dwindled considerably over the years in Israel and considering it was never high to begin with, this is not a tremendous surprise. The three reasons to best explain this bizarre lack of fame are style of play, attitude and location.

If one were to ask Balili’s position, the response would certainly be a shrug of uncertainty. On paper, Balili is a striker and has shown periods of clinical finishing. That being said, he is not a tremendous talent in front of the net, nor is he a target striker who can control the ball with his back to the goal. He lacks technical ability over short a distance which makes him inept in the five yard box. Some believe that Balili’s true position is winger. That assumption is inaccurate because he cannot cross the ball in motion, nor does he dribble with tremendous speed. Balili doesn’t have the passing ability to trail strikers and he lacks the defence required to play further behind.

It would seem from this description that Balili has no business whatsoever on the pitch, yet the few areas where he does excel, are what make him such a valuable commodity. He is undeniably tough and his aggressive nature has caused many a bewildered defender to lose possession. Balili also possess a fantastic volley and is apt at receiving long balls. While a bit on the short side, Balili is well built, thus enabling to compete for space and leverage against stronger opponents.

In his younger days, Balili was known somewhat as an anti hero. Uncooperative with the media and presenting a rebellious disposition, the press have unofficially condemned Balili as the black sheep of Israeli Football. As Balili has matured, he’s now 28; certain aloofness has distanced him from the Israeli media. His disdain for most reporters has reduced his notoriety and as we all know, most contemporary sports industries are fueled by publicity. Though this lack of publicity is probably the leading contributor to his infrequent appearances in the Israeli national team, Balili claims to have come to terms with his professional obscurity in his own country. As he causally informed Channel Five when he appeared on their one on one segment, “I have no problem playing out the remainder of my professional career in Turkey.”

Some Israelis might have felt insulted, but most probably didn’t care and that’s a shame.