19 Jun Cohen’s Star Shines on World Stage
Days after Yavneh’s Year 10 Boys soccer team was inspired by a surprise appearance from Melbourne City’s A-League Grand Final hero Yonatan Cohen, our very own student and soccer star Mikey Cohen embarked on a trip of a lifetime in Europe.
Mikey represented Melbourne City’s U15 Academy Squad on the world stage at the prestigious Malmö Trophy in Sweden, an international youth football tournament for the best clubs in the U15 age group. Reflecting on his trip, Mikey said “it was an insane and unbelievable experience, one that I will never forget”.
The first leg of the two-week trip saw Mikey and the squad stay at English Premier League powerhouse Manchester City’s Football Academy, where they received an inner sanctum insight into the workings of one of the world’s most successful football clubs.
“Once we arrived in England, we were given the rooms of the first team players, as they were in their off-season. I was given Pep Guardiola’s (Manchester City Manager) room, and right next to me was Erling Haaland’s (star striker) room. While there we were treated and lived liked professional footballers. Our schedule consisted of breakfast then gym followed by a team meeting. After lunch we trained with the Manchester City Academy kids and played a different type of football. It was really eye opening and cool to see a level of football that Australia doesn’t have. Later that evening we had a range of activities including free time in the player lounge, stadium tours and meet and greet with players that were doing rehab. This was our daily schedule for the whole week! We also had two Malmö Trophy warm up matches against Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City’s B team. We jetted off to Sweden and when we arrived at the team hotel the opponents in our group were revealed to us and they were some of Europe’s top teams: Real Madrid (Spain), Olympiacos (Greece), BSC Young Boys (Switzerland) and the host team Malmö. All these teams were out of this world and a true representation of European football. We finished 3rd in the group with one win, two draws and one loss. All games were challenging but the overall experience was out of this world and another step closer to helping me reach my goal of becoming a professional footballer. I am beyond grateful for the experience.”
Before leaving for Europe, Mikey shared a Shabbat meal with his namesake Melbourne City striker Yonatan Cohen. The pair feasted on football chat (and Challah and dips), the perfect preparation for his international football journey which ultimately netted him a stunning goal, two assists and an unforgettable and formative experience. ! מייקי זה מצוין
Author: Aaron Fetter, Head of Sports (Secondary)
