While sport remains suspended during the coronavirus lockdown, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Youth Academy continues to operate under the limitations of confinement and social distancing and it’s no different for the goalkeepers and their coaches, who are overseen by Israel Ainy.

Before the limitations were imposed, goalkeeping coaches worked with their young charges in groups and individually, but under the current conditions, there have had to be adjustments and new training modes have been employed to keep the players as fit as is possible.

“We have mixed feelings during this period. We greatly miss our football, the daily routine, the coaching staff and the Academy staff, and most of all, our fledgling goalkeepers. We are facing very a challenging period when people are subject to tremendous limitations, and sporting activity is no exception,” Ainy said.

But activities have not stopped and Ainy is in extensive daily contact with all the Academy’s goalkeeping coaches, Shura Ovarov, Shai Hess, Galil Ben Shaanan, Shaul Hagiel and Eliad Graff. He praised them for the tremendous efforts they are making to try to keep the players in form.

“We are very pleased with the daily contact we have with the goalkeepers and their parents, who are always there to lend support as we carry out six training sessions a week. We have now completed five weeks’ continual training,” he said.

 Watch the Academy’s goalkeepers training in their home environment:

“Our programme is mainly geared for the Academy’s under-19s and under-8s, who usually train at Kiryat Shalom and the university, and our aim is to maintain and improve their technical abilities. This is apart from the fitness work they are doing.

“We must ensure the wellbeing of the players and their families. The space limitations are a problem so we have to improvise, but we have seen great initiative from the players and their families as they try to resolve those issues while maintaining the Health Ministry guidelines. Our contact via the Zoom app has been vital for maintaining the goalkeepers’ tactical and mental sharpness. We also get feedback from the Soccer Lab programme which monitors activity and abilities while they train in a mode that is different to what they are used to.”

Ainy said he was very encouraged to see that the coaches’ instructions, particularly concerning mental training, were showing good results and that the players were carrying out their tasks diligently.

“Even the younger goalkeepers make us feel proud and give us a great sense of satisfaction when we see the video clips they send us to show what training they are doing. The Academy’s planning and actions to advance the players deserve much praise.”

On a personal level, the lockdown has allowed Ainy to spend more quality time with his wife, Mali, and his children, Liam and Shira, and he has used the time to improve his own proficiency by discussing training methods with colleagues.

He has also shared the Academy’s work with fellow coaches from Liverpool, Ajax, Manchester City and Marseilles whom he said were “greatly impressed by the dedication and devotion we ascribe to our goalkeepers.”

He summed up by extending best wishes and warm appreciation to Academy technical director Patrick Van Leeuwen.

“The Academy has proven once again that it is a leader and is ready to take on any challenge in complex conditions. We have a strong base and we are dedicated to instilling true values and devotion, which is reciprocated and all this contributes to the robustness of the Academy.

“I also want to wish a speedy recovery and return to health to Or Yitzhak, the under-19 team’s goalkeeper, who has undergone a shoulder operation and is already undergoing rehab with the medical staff. I am certain that we will all overcome this period and I wish good health to everybody.”