Dzeko injury for Israel game gives boost to Gutman
Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko could miss the next three weeks with a “very serious” calf injury, including the forthcoming match against Israel on Sunday.
Dzeko was forced from the field just four minutes after replacing Fernandinho during the second half of City’s 2-2 Barclays Premier League draw at QPR on Saturday, and he has been ruled out of Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Euro 2016 qualifier against Israel on Sunday.
Bosnia-Herzegovina team doctor Reuf Karabeg confirmed that Dzeko will miss Sunday’s match against Israel.
“It’s a very serious injury and requires the kind of treatment whose time-frame unfortunately rules out a quick return,” Dr Karabeg said on the Bosnia-Herzegovina Football Federation website.
Israel manager Eli Gutman has named a 25-man squad for their crucial Euro 2016 qualifier against Bosnia on Sunday night.
Making four changes from the squad which beat Cyprus and Andorra last month as the Israelis got their qualifying campaign off to a 100 percent winning start, Charlton Athletic defender Tal Ben Haim is once more set to captain the squad, while Lior Refaelov, who scored a hat-trick for Club Brugge in the Europa League on Thursday has earned a recall.
Also in the squad is Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Eran Zahavi, despite the midfielder criticising both Gutman and the Israel Football Association for not supporting him after he was attacked by a Hapoel Tel Aviv fan last week. The pair met for lunch 48 hours later, with Gutman saying: “Eran is a main player on the national team and his commitment to the side is clear and exemplary. The national team is perhaps the one place where it doesn’t matter which club you play for. We have a cohesive and united group of players who are happy to play with each other for a common goal.”
Zahavi admitted he missed a text message from Gutman before going out for lunch with him, saying: “I went through a tough week, a week which reminded me how much I love to play soccer. This is all behind us now and I’m entering this week with a strong desire to play and do whatever I can for Israel.”
Meanwhile, Bosnia manager Safet Susic says he isn’t expecting his side to win in Israel after Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko was ruled out of the game through injury. He said: “If Dzeko can’t play we will be resigned to playing for a draw against Israel because we have no hope of winning without him.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
