League champions Maccabi Tel Aviv's new but not-quite-new head coach Oscar Garcia is not of a mind to hide how excited he is to return to Tel Aviv

"When I received Maccabi's offer to return to Tel Aviv, the decision was a simple one for me – I know the team, I know the town and most important I know the people. As you all know, I'm a person who makes decisions at a gut level, and my gut is telling me this is the right time to come back. The main thing that has always guided me throughout my career, the thing I've always talked about, is my ambition to move ahead. That's what I want to do at Maccabi. Even when I was away last season, I kept up with what was going on at Maccabi all the time. I saw how well the club were doing, but that doesn't mean we haven't got our work cut out. We still have to show a lot of determination and work very hard to show we're able to meet our expectations and the challenges ahead".

"I'd like to thank (owner) Mitch (Goldhar), (owner-representative) Jack (Angelides) and (sports director) Jordi (Cruyff) for the faith they've shown in me for the second time. When I stood on the podium at Rabin Square during last year's title celebration, I said: 'There's a Yellow glow in my heart, there will always be a Yellow glow in my heart', and I meant every word. I've always been a man of few words, not good at making speeches. Time is short and there's much work to do. I'm looking forward to coaching at Maccabi again and getting back in touch with you, the wonderful Maccabi fans".

"Maccabi Forever!"

Oscar