Taleb Tawatha
Israeli footballer (born 1992)
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Taleb Tawatha (or Twatha,[1] Arabic: طالب طواطحه, Hebrew: טאלב טוואטחה; born 21 June 1992) is a former Israeli professional footballer who plays as a left-back. He's now a Free Agent
|
Tawatha playing for Maccabi Haifa in 2015 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 21 June 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Jisr az-Zarqa, Israel | ||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position | Left-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2010 | Maccabi Haifa | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2016 | Maccabi Haifa | 153 | (5) |
| 2016–2019 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 30 | (0) |
| 2019–2020 | Ludogorets Razgrad | 7 | (0) |
| 2020–2022 | Maccabi Haifa | 18 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Bnei Sakhnin | 19 | (0) |
| Total | 288 | (9) | |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2007–2008 | Israel U16 | 8 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | Israel U17 | 15 | (2) |
| 2009 | Israel U18 | 3 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Israel U19 | 5 | (0) |
| 2011–2013 | Israel U21 | 18 | (3) |
| 2011–2020 | Israel | 21 | (1) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2025–2026 | S.C. Kafr Qasim | ||
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 24 February 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 15 May 2023 | |||
Tawatha started his career at Maccabi Haifa, where he won Israeli Premier League title in 2011 and the Israel State Cup in 2016. He became an integral part of the club's defence, making 204 appearances over the course of seven seasons. In July 2016, Tawatha signed for German club Eintracht Frankfurt of the Bundesliga for a transfer fee of €1.5 million, and was part of the team that won the DFB-Pokal in 2018. In August 2019, he was released and two weeks later signed as a free agent with Bulgarian club Ludogorets Razgrad.
A youth international for Israel from under-16 to under-21 level, Tawatha made his senior debut in 2011.
Early life
Tawatha was born in Jisr az-Zarqa, Israel, to an Arab-Muslim family of Sudanese and Bedouin descent.[3]
Career
Maccabi Haifa
Tawatha trained in the youth teams of Maccabi Haifa. In 2009 he made his debut appearance in the senior team. His break-through season was 2010/2011 in which he helped Maccabi Haifa to win the Israeli Premier League championship, scored one goal and assisted five from his position as a left defender. Tawatha won the "Young Discovery Award" and was included in the MVP team of the season. In 2016 he won the Israeli State Cup with Maccabi Haifa.
Eintracht Frankfurt
In July 2016, Tawatha was signed by German club Eintracht Frankfurt for a transfer fee of 1.5 million Euros. On 19 May 2018, he won the DFB-Pokal with Eintracht Frankfurt after they defeated Bayern Munich 3–1 in the final.[4]
Ludogorets Razgrad
On 11 September 2019, Tawatha joined Bulgarian First League side Ludogorets Razgrad as a free agent.[5]
Maccabi Haifa (Second Stint)
On October 18, 2020, Tawatha rejoined Maccabi Haifa for a €100,000 transfer fee.[6] In two seasons with the club, he served as mostly as a reserve, only having 18 total appearances without scoring a goal or an assist.[7]
Bnei Sakhnin
On July 3, 2022, Tawatha signed with Bnei Sakhnin on a free transfer.[8] Tawatha made 19 total appearances, registering two assists. [9] On November 20, 2024, Tawatha announced his retirement.[10]
Coaching career
S.C. Kafr Qasim
On July 1, 2025 Tawatha was named an assistant manager for Liga Leumit side S.C. Kafr Qasim. On October 13, Tawatha was promoted to head coach follow former Head Coach Adham Hadia's move to Maccabi Bnei Reineh F.C.[11]
Career statistics
Club
- As of 1 June 2022[12]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Maccabi Haifa | 2009–10 | Israeli Premier League | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[b] | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| 2010–11 | 18 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6[b] | 0 | 27 | 1 | ||
| 2011–12 | 28 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 3[b] | 0 | 47 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | 21 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 25 | 3 | ||
| 2013–14 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 0 | ||
| 2014–15 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 1 | ||
| 2015–16 | 27 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 | ||
| Total | 153 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 204 | 7 | ||
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 2016–17[13] | Bundesliga | 14 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 2017–18[13] | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19[13] | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Total | 30 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 2 | ||
| Ludogorets Razgrad | 2019–20[14] | Bulgarian First Professional League | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2020–21[14] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| Maccabi Haifa | 2020–21 | Israeli Premier League | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| 2021–22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| Total | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 0 | ||
| Bnei Sakhnin | 2022–23 | Israeli Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 208 | 5 | 18 | 3 | 19 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 276 | 9 | ||
- Includes Israel State Cup, DFB-Pokal, Bulgarian Cup.
- Appearance in Bulgarian Supercup
International
- Scores and results list Israel's goal tally first.[15]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 15 November 2018 | Netanya Stadium, Netanya, Israel |  Guatemala | 2–0 | 7–0 | Friendly |
Honours
Maccabi Haifa
- Israeli Premier League: 2010–11, 2020–21, 2021–22
- Israel State Cup: 2015–16
- Toto Cup: 2021–22
- Israel Super Cup: 2021
Eintracht Frankfurt
Ludogorets Razgrad
