MHaifa1913
29 Aug 2003, 05:20 PM
Omri Afek to replace Bachar at Santander
By Asher Goldberg
Omri Afek, whose contract with Hapoel Tel Aviv
expired at the end of the summer, arrived in Spain
last night, hoping to close a deal with Racing
Santander. Afek will undergo physical examinations
today and meet with the president of the Spanish
club. If everything goes as expected, the young
midfielder will sign a one-year deal to join
fellow Israelis Yossi Benayoun and Dudu Awat at
Santander.
"I know I need to be patient and hope that everything will be finalized today and I'll fulfill my dream to play in Europe," Afek said yesterday.
"Santander is a good option after I rejected offers from other teams in Europe and after my transfer to the American league didn't work out."
Afek is expected to earn a base salary of
140,000 euros, which could increase to some
200,000 euros. Afek is scheduled to return to
Israel on Sunday to join the national team's
training session on Monday for the Euro 2004
qualifiers.
The open slot on Santander was made possible by
the exit of another Israeli, Ilan Bachar, who
met with the Spanish club's top brass
yesterday.
Bachar has reached a tentative agreement to join
Haim Revivo at Ashdod SC and is expected to
sign a $100,000 contract when he returns to
Israel on Sunday.
By Asher Goldberg
Omri Afek, whose contract with Hapoel Tel Aviv
expired at the end of the summer, arrived in Spain
last night, hoping to close a deal with Racing
Santander. Afek will undergo physical examinations
today and meet with the president of the Spanish
club. If everything goes as expected, the young
midfielder will sign a one-year deal to join
fellow Israelis Yossi Benayoun and Dudu Awat at
Santander.
"I know I need to be patient and hope that everything will be finalized today and I'll fulfill my dream to play in Europe," Afek said yesterday.
"Santander is a good option after I rejected offers from other teams in Europe and after my transfer to the American league didn't work out."
Afek is expected to earn a base salary of
140,000 euros, which could increase to some
200,000 euros. Afek is scheduled to return to
Israel on Sunday to join the national team's
training session on Monday for the Euro 2004
qualifiers.
The open slot on Santander was made possible by
the exit of another Israeli, Ilan Bachar, who
met with the Spanish club's top brass
yesterday.
Bachar has reached a tentative agreement to join
Haim Revivo at Ashdod SC and is expected to
sign a $100,000 contract when he returns to
Israel on Sunday.