Hanukkah Soccer Legends: Night 6 – Ronny Rosenthal | OneFootball

Ronny Rosenthal was a striker who originally hailed from Haifa, Israel. While not the tallest (he stood just under 6’0”), he had a powerful left foot and was affectionately known as “Rocket” Ronny.

His professional career started with his hometown club Maccabi Haifa, with whom he also spent his youth development. After twelve years with the Haifa, Ronny moved to Club Brugge in 1986. In two seasons there, he scored 15 goals in 47 games and helped Brugge win a Belgian title. Two more seasons followed with Belgian side Standard Liege, where Ronny improved his goal tally to 20 in 44 games. Somewhere in this time he also met his future wife. 

“Rocket” Takes Off

1990 started out rough. Rosenthal was traded to Udinese, where he never played a single minute. He then left for England to trial with Luton Town, where he scored twice in three matches. This caught the attention of Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish, who brought him on loan to the Reds for the latter part of the season. In their title-winning 1990 run, Rosenthal scored seven goals in eight games, becoming a bit of a local hero. His transfer to Liverpool was made permanent that summer. The £1.1 million fee was the then-highest paid for a non-UK player.

“Rocket” Ronny struggled to find a fit in Liverpool over the next few years as he competed with a host of other forwards. He was traded to Tottenham Hotspur in 1994. Sadly, his form didn’t improve with the Spurs, and over 88 games in the next three years he only scored four times in league play (but five times in the FA Cup). In 1997, at 33 years old, he dropped down two leagues to join Watford. In the next two years, he was part of a squad that performed back-to-back promotions. He retired after Watford won the First Division in 1999.

Rosenthal was capped 60 times for Israel, scored 11 goals.

About This Article Series

Hanukkah, the festival of lights, is celebrated over eight days and nights by followers of Judaism across the world. It commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem after the success of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century BCE.

The holiday’s close proximity to Christmas has made it a mainstay within the United States and other western regions, even though its religious importance is somewhat minor. In observance of Hanukkah, Hooligan Soccer will present eight shining soccer players associated with the Jewish faith.

Night 1: Benny FeilhaberNight 2: Eran ZahaviNight 3: David “Dudu” AouateNight 4: Tai BariboNight 5: Oscar Gloukh