After a disastrous 0-2 start to the season, Beitar Jerusalem has now won there straight to head into the international break on a high after disposing of Hapoel Haifa 2-1 in a game that featured plenty of action. On one hand, Almog Cohen and his squad probably would like to keep going and collect another win and then another with Hapoel Ramat Gan up next just after the break itself.

But with three weeks coming up without an official game, it also gives the yellow-and-black a chance to reset, rest and reflect on what was a very intense start to the season that saw the team ride a rollercoaster up and down and all around for a club that in fact, itself is a rollercoaster so to speak.

There’s never a dull moment at Beitar, win, lose or draw as there always seems to be something on the front burner and percolating, ready to burst. There are expectations this season and that no doubt plays a major factor in the pressure cooker that is Beitar, but in reality, the club has always been that way, there is no middle ground as Cohen put it.

However, in today’s day and age, just as the bench boss said in the post match press conference, “sometimes our sports media is everything except sports.”

That is certainly true as the current generation lives on their phones with the fastest news and views coming at them close to 100mph minute after minute, you after hour and day after day. The shallow and sensationalistic media as Cohen put it doesn’t focus on the real essence of sports which he hopes will change.

But until that time actually comes, Cohen’s got to manage the extra curricular activities that make Beitar the lightning rod that it is.

Sure there is endless talk about Yarden Shua and why he isn’t starting and coming off of the bench. How he missed a penalty and what his general health is like. Thankfully for the player himself, the supporters are behind hi 110% and will not waver as they cheered Shua on prior to the game, which he warmed and during his time on the pitch. He is a hero to the yellow-and-black loyalists.

Shua is also going to be heading with the Israeli National Team on their four match foray that will see them head to Austria, Hungary and Serbia to play the likes of Ireland, Kosovo and Austria. what his real medical condition is still a mystery to all, but after the upcoming contests, everyone will get a much better idea as to how far Shua can push himself.

There is also the thought that Shua just doesn’t fit into the system that Cohen is playing and would be much better off coming off of the bench, but there’s no question that the captain wants to play and wants to begin the game on the pitch.

One player who has been able to start of late is Tomer Yosefi who joined Beitar over the summer. Now that Beitar is five games into the season, it’s clear that the attacking midfielder has been able to make an impact on the team’s game play and is turning into a star.

The 27-year old assisted on Omer Atzily’s goal with a nice touch pass to help Beitar to 2-0 a he continues to integrate into the team after arriving this summer from a season at FC Polissya Zhytomyr in Ukraine after having featured for Hapoel Beer Sheva as well as Hapoel Haifa.

But so far so good for Yosefi who is getting used to life as a Beitar Jerusalem player, “I had always heard that Beitar Jerusalem is a club with an enormous amount of pressure. When things are good, it’s the best in the world and when things aren’t, it’s the worst in the world. But the truth is that pressure doesn’t really affect me. It doesn’t get to me that much. Just like anywhere in the world and in any job, there are always periods that are not that successful and periods that are.”

Yosefi also shared his feelings about what it is like to work with Cohen and where he sees his own game heading, “Honestly, I’m having some amazing feelings here. I’m happy to be part of this club and I’m happy that we’re coming together as a team. Of course, none of this would have happened without the coaching staff and Almog, who are genuinely giving me the greatest confidence in the world. On the one hand, I feel free in how I can play my game, but on the other hand, I know I have to give 100% in every minute on the pitch.

“I’m happy that I’m improving from game to game. When the statistics will show up on the scoresheet, that’s a bonus for me. But the most important thing is that we won and that we can say we’ve come out of the little crisis we found ourselves in at the start of the season. I knew that even after those two defeats at the start of the season, we had a good team and a good coaching staff. I knew that once we got out of that crisis, we would be an excellent team here and prove to everyone what we’re capable of.”

Cohen himself also spoke about what he sees in Yosefi’s game and why it was important for Lehavim native to the the club to join Beitar, “First of all, before we finalized the deal, I remember that Barak, the owner, and I spoke, and Tomer was perhaps the first player I said we absolutely had to bring in. He has a lot of qualities in his game that aren’t necessarily just offensive. There are many things people don’t see, including defensive and physical attributes. For me, that was the foundation for why we pushed so hard to sign him.”

I remember speaking with him several times, and every time, you know, we tried to make it happen. I also think Tomer deserves credit because his desire to come to Beitar Jerusalem helped make the deal happen. So I’m very happy for him. But as I said, for him and for everyone, a game like this is already behind us. If we want to be a winning team, we need to forget about it quickly, work harder than we have been, and continue improving. Because unfortunately, we’ve already given away some ground, and we need to make it back.”

Yosefi explained his relationship on the pitch with Omer Aztiliy, “First of all, Omer and I have a really, really good partnership. We understand each other instinctively. I make runs in behind, he moves inside, and there are many times when I go toward the touchline while he cuts inside. We’re very, very versatile in our play. I’m happy with the partnership we have and of course, it’s easier to play alongside him, so I’m happy about that.”

With the international break coming up, Yosefi spoke about his dreams of being able to represent the blue-and-white, “I think that whoever needs to watch Beitar’s games is watching them. Obviously, the dream is to play for the Israel national team. I need to continue at this pace, but I think that, above all, it’s about the team. Once the team comes together and we start playing well, it’s also easier to produce better performances.

“When we were going through a less successful period, it was also difficult to showcase yourself. Again, I think we’re heading in a good direction, the right direction and we’ll return from the break at an even better pace. We now have two weeks to rest and work even harder. We have a very, very difficult game against Hapoel Ramat Gan and then we return to Teddy for the match against Maccabi Tel Aviv. We’ll come back better prepared and more fired up.”