Mordechai Spiegler


Mordechai "Motaleh" Shpigler is an Israeli former footballer and manager. He remains Israel's record goalscorer, with 33 goals in 83 caps.

Biography

Mordechai Shpigler was born in Sochi, Soviet Union, and is Jewish. He moved to Netanya, Israel, when he was a boy.

Playing career

Club career

As a striker, he played for Maccabi Netanya along with Paris Saint Germain in France and alongside Pelé for New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League in the 1970s.
He was chosen as the Israeli Player of the Year a record four times, in 1967/68, 1968/69, 1969/70, and in 1970/71.

International career

Shpigler made his international debut for Israel on 2 January 1964 against Hong Kong. He took part in the Israeli win in the 1964 AFC Asian Cup, and scored 2 goals at the tournament, which made him a joint top scorer of the tournament.
His major achievement was helping Israel qualify for the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. He scored Israel's lone goal in World Cup history in a 1–1 draw against Sweden.
His 32 goals for the national team is the Israeli record. Shpigler scored 25 goals in 62 'official' internationals for the Israeli national side, he also played in 21 other 'unofficial' matches scoring seven more goals.
Shpigler captained the Israeli Olympic team at Mexico City 1968 which reached the quarter-finals, losing to Bulgaria by a draw after the match ended 1–1.

International

International goals

#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.2 January 1964Government Stadium, Wan Chai Hong Kong3–0WinFriendly
2.26 May 1964Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel1–0Win1964 AFC Asian Cup
3.29 May 1964Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel2–0Win1964 AFC Asian Cup
4.28 November 1964Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel2–0WinFriendly
5.6 April 1966Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel7–1WinFriendly
6.6 April 1966Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel7–1WinFriendly
7.15 June 1966Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel1–2LossFriendly
8.12 October 1966Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel1–3LossFriendly
9.14 February 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel2–1WinFriendly
10.14 February 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel2–1WinFriendly
11.17 March 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel7–0WinFriendly
12.17 March 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel7–0WinFriendly
13.17 March 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel7–0WinFriendly
14.12 May 1968Amjadieh Stadium, Tehran, Iran6–1Win1968 AFC Asian Cup
15.12 May 1968Amjadieh Stadium, Tehran, Iran6–1Win1968 AFC Asian Cup
16.10 September 1968Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel2–3LossFriendly
17.15 September 1968Yankee Stadium New York City, United States3–3DrawFriendly
18.15 September 1968Yankee Stadium New York City, United States3–3DrawFriendly
19.25 September 1968Temple Stadium, Philadelphia, USA4–0WinFriendly
20.25 September 1968Temple Stadium, Philadelphia, USA4–0WinFriendly
21.25 September 1968Temple Stadium, Philadelphia, USA4–0WinFriendly
22.25 September 1968Temple Stadium, Philadelphia, USA4–0WinFriendly
23.15 October 1968Estadio Nou Camp, León, Guanajuato, Mexico3–1Win1968 Summer Olympics
24.28 September 1969Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel2–0Win1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
25.1 October 1969Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel4–0Win1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
26.14 December 1969Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney, Australia1–1Draw1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
27.22 March 1970Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia5–1WinFriendly
28.7 June 1970Estadio Luis Dosal, Toluca, Mexico1–1Draw1970 FIFA World Cup
29.11 November 1971Lang Park, Brisbane, Australia2–2DrawFriendly
30.28 March 1972Bogyoke Aung San Stadium, Yangon, Burma1–0Win1972 Summer Olympics qualification
31.16 May 1973Seoul, South Korea2–1Win1974 FIFA World Cup qualification
32.21 May 1973Seoul, South Korea6–0Win1974 FIFA World Cup qualification

Post-playing career

He was nominated as the best Israeli player of the prior 50 years by the Israel Football Association in the UEFA Jubilee Awards in November 2003. Shpigler is a member of the Education and Publicity Committee of the IFA.
In 2007, he won a lifetime contributions special award for the Israeli national team in the 1970 FIFA World Cup, determined by Yedioth Ahronoth and the Israeli football player association.

Honours

Player

Club

;Maccabi Netanya
; Israel

Club

;Beitar Tel Aviv
;Maccabi Netanya