ISRAEL are looking to Tal Ben Haim to pave the way for victory over England in Saturday's Euro showdown in Tel Aviv.
The Group E underdogs are relying on the Wanderers defender and their other Premiership regular, West Ham's mercurial midfielder, Yossi Benayoun, to give them the lowdown on the strengths and weaknesses of Steve McClaren's men and to provide the inspiration for their young team-mates to pull off a shock result.
Idan Tal, who is with the Israeli squad but is one of two key players suspended for the England game, revealed today that national coach Dror Kashtan is banking on Ben Haim and Benayoun's knowledge of players they meet week in and week out.
"People know of the qualities of Tal Ben Haim and Yossi Benayoun from their displays in the Premiership," said the Wanderers midfielder.
"Tal and Yossi will need to use all their experience and quality to nurture the other players on the physicality and skill that the England players possess."
Ben Haim and Benayoun have helped raise the standard and the profile of the Israel international side, but Tal says they are not the only players to look out for in a game he believes is crucial to the qualification hopes of both teams - even though, like himself, top striker, Roberto Colautti of Maccabi Haifa, is suspended.
Chelsea's 17-year-old striker Ben Sahar, pictured, Israel's answer to Wayne Rooney, and 19-year-old Beitar Jerusalem prospect Toto Tamuz, are likely to pose the main attacking threats.
"Sahar is already a household name in Israel," Tal said. "He is getting the best grounding of all at Chelsea and he brings a nice blend of exuberance and zest to the national team.
"Many pundits in Israel call him Israel's Wayne Rooney, but that it is putting too much pressure on the boy. He has a lot of natural ability and knows how to score goals. He is still only a baby and it would be unfair if too much pressure was heaped on his young shoulders.
"The other striker that everyone is talking about is Nigerian-born Toto Tamuz. He has come off the bench in our last three Euro qualifiers. He has just been granted Israeli citizenship and is available to play on Saturday, when many thought he was going to miss out.
"He is elusive and very strong. He is still very young and again the Israeli public have to be patient with him. Toto has fantastic natural ability to be a world-class striker in years to come.
"Israel is a footballing nation that is developing every year. There are many good youngsters coming through and staking a claim to be in the team on Saturday."
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