Avi Cohen
Avi Cohen, 1990
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Avraham Cohen אברהם כהן |
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| Date of birth | 14 November 1956 | ||
| Place of birth | Cairo, Egypt | ||
| Date of death | 28 December 2010 (aged 54) | ||
| Place of death | Tel Aviv, Israel | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1966–1974 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1974–1979 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 134 | (10) |
| 1979–1981 | Liverpool | 18 | (1) |
| 1981–1987 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 158 | (4) |
| 1987–1988 | Rangers | 7 | (0) |
| 1988–1990 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 40 | (1) |
| 1991 | Maccabi Netanya | 3 | (0) |
| Total | 56 | (2) | |
| National team | |||
| 1976–1988 | Israel | 51 | (3) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1990–1992 | Maccabi Netanya | ||
| 1992–1993 | Beitar Tel Aviv | ||
| 1993–1994 | Maccabi Yavne | ||
| 1994–1995 | Ironi Ashdod | ||
| 1995–1998 | Hapoel Kfar Saba | ||
| 1998–1999 | Hapoel Ashkelon | ||
| 1999–2000 | Hapoel Kfar Saba | ||
| 2001 | Maccabi Herzliya | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Avraham "Avi" Cohen (Hebrew: אבי כהן; 14 November 1956 – 29 December 2010) was an Israeli footballer who played as a defender. He was best known for his spells playing for two British clubs:Liverpool in England and Rangers in Scotland. After retirement from active football and management, he was the chairman of the Israel Professional Footballers Association for over five years until he was killed in a motorcycle crash. after his death Maccabi Tel Aviv has retired the number 5 that he wore.
Cohen began his playing career with Maccabi Tel Aviv, before joining Liverpool for a fee of £200,000 ($450,000) in July 1979, and became the first Israeli to play in England. He struggled to establish himself as a regular at Anfield and was released in November 1981, rejoining Maccabi. On 20 September 1980, Cohen stirred up controversy when he decided to play in Liverpool's away fixture versus Southampton, which fell on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Liverpool drew with Southampton 2–2 in front of 24,085 spectators and Cohen was lambasted by the Israeli media for playing. He returned to the United Kingdom in 1987, when he had a brief spell under former Liverpool teammate Graeme Souness at Rangers, before ending his career with Maccabi Netanya.
He also played for the Israeli national team, making his debut on 19 July 1976 during the 1976 Summer Olympics in a 0–0 draw against Guatemala. On 9 October 1984, Cohen scored his first goal against Greece in a 2–2 friendly draw. He was capped 51 times, scoring 3 goals. His son, Tamir, is also a professional footballer who plays for Maccabi Haifa in the Israeli Premier League and the Israeli national team.
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