Ironi striker Stanislav Bilenkyi spoke about life in Israel.
— When I arrived in Israel, there were already two wars here — with Gaza and Lebanon. Now the situation in Israel is calmer. It is very tiring that this has been haunting me since 2014. Although by 2022, I was already in Europe.
In general, I decided when I was 18 that I want to play in Europe. I only returned once, going on loan to "Rukh", but that was my big mistake. At that time, I even didn’t plan to return, but I missed Ukraine and made that decision. Now I also miss Ukraine very much.
— What was the most epic moment you experienced in Israel during the resurgence of military actions?
— This cannot be compared to what is happening in Ukraine. In two and a half years in Netanya, I heard the sound of the siren four times. Although in Tel Aviv during the acute phase — every day at least two to three air alerts. But it should be understood that this alert lasts a maximum of five minutes because Israel is small: rockets fly, they are quickly intercepted, and that’s it.
There was also a case in 2023 when Israel suspended the championship for a month, and we went to play a friendly match near Tel Aviv. We arrived at the match and there was a siren — it was the first time I felt that something could happen. It was the first and last time in Israel that I was scared.
— What did you do during the suspension of the championship?
— We trained with the team, although not immediately. There was a pause of about two weeks. Fortunately, at that time I was alone at home. My wife flew to Ukraine because she decided to give birth to the child there.
I can say that all the strain was taken by Tel Aviv, where almost all rockets were aimed. During the hot phase, there could be five to seven sirens a day there. But in Netanya, during the war between Israel and Gaza, I didn’t hear a single siren. I just sat and read the news on Telegram channels. Just to give you an idea, the distance between Tel Aviv and Netanya is about 13-15 kilometers.
Vladislav Liutostansky