Beitar Jerusalem headed down south last week for a mini-training camp in the city of Eilat ahead of returning to league action which is hopeful to begin next weekend. The purpose of the camp was to keep all of the club’s players together, both Israelis and foreigners and in playing form in order to continue battling for the Premier League championship.

Barak Itzhaki’s squad went through intense training sessions, in most cases twice a day to ensure that the players stayed focussed on the goal during the war with Iran. The professional staff combined elements of fitness, tactics, finishing and various drills such as set pieces, attacking and defensive situations and much more. The bench boss demanded perfection in the execution of the drills and halted the sessions more than once to correct the players to make sure that when the league restarts Beitar will be the team to beat.

Many other top division teams do not have their full squads with them as many foreigners left the Holy Land including table leaders Hapoel Beer Sheva, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv. By keeping the team together and intact during these trying times, the yellow-and-black are hoping that they will have the upper hand when the league gets back to action.

The club’s management and professional staff decided that players with children would be allowed to bring them along in order to keep the families together and were able to spend quality time with them as well. The team will now return to their regular training routine at the Beit Vegan training facility, where they will continue to stay in tip-top shape as they await for the Home Font Command to announce when the league will return.

Boris Enow, who joined the squad during the winter transfer window from Major League Soccer’s DC United spoke about the training camp and the importance of staying together as one unit since the start of Operation Lion’s Roar.

“We felt very good at the camp,” Enow began. “It was very important to be here together as a team, to stay in shape and to be together during this time. On the day everything began we felt like we didn’t understand what was happening. But the club explained things to us, asked us to calm down and helped us understand the situation. They immediately asked us if we wanted to return to our families or stay in Israel and see how the coming days would unfold. But we, the foreign players, decided to stay because it feels like family to us. The team is like a family for us and we were really happy to come here to Eilat, which is a bit safer, to start the camp.”

Enow, who was a heralded addition to Beitar after having there years of experience in the Israeli league with Maccabi Netanya before heading to North America continued about how meaningful the time by the Red Sea was.

“We came to a different type of camp, with the foreign players and the families. It was a wonderful initiative by the club to bring us here in the middle of this challenging situation, because we really needed to be together. I have to say a big thank you to the owner, Barak Abramov, for what he gave to the team, the families, the staff and the players. He brought all of us here together and made us feel truly at home. We also want to say a big thank you to the fans because we received so many messages from them saying they are with us and that we shouldn’t be afraid. We are really happy and feel very good.”

When Enow inked the deal with Beitar, the supporters all felt that the club was without a question trying to bring in the highest quality players that they could in order to compete for the league title. When he was unveiled at Teddy Stadium, the fans went wild and were thrilled that the midfielder landed in the capital city and would be gracing the pitches across the Holy Land.

“From the first day I arrived at Teddy Stadium and I was presented to everyone in attendance, I truly felt that this was home. It was an unforgettable moment in my career and it shows that the fans really love me and that this club is like a family. I really miss playing in the league. I hope everything ends soon and we can return to playing. I feel fit, I feel good and the team does as well. That’s why it was so important to come down here to the training camp in Eilat. We stayed in shape and now we’re just waiting for the league to continue so that we can keep doing what we love.”