CHELSEA PAY A visit to Tel Aviv this evening to face Maccabi and there are a couple of familiar faces involved with the Israeli club.
Their manager is Slavisa Jokanovic, who played at Stamford Bridge between 2000 and 2002 before going onto a hugely successful coaching career.
With Partizan Belgrade, he won two successive league and cup doubles in the two years he was there.
He spent a season in Thailand, winning another championship with Muangthong and following stints in Bulgaria and Spain, he arrived at Watford last season on a short-term deal.
While with the Hornets, he guided them to second place in the Championship and automatic promotion to the Premier League. But he left when talks over a new contract broke down after he asked for his salary to be trebled.
He’s been in Tel Aviv since June of this year, having been brought in by another former Premier League player.
Jordi Cruyff signed for Manchester United from Barcelona in the summer of 1996 but his time at Old Trafford was blighted by injuries and despite spending four years at the club and being a part of the 1996/97 title-winning squad, he only made 57 appearances.
Still, when he returned to Spain with Alaves, he enjoyed arguably the most consistent spell of his career, averaging more than 30 league appearances every season whole aldso leading the unfashionable side to the 2001 Uefa Cup final, where they lost 5-4 in an unforgettable battle with Liverpool.
The following season, he enjoyed another solid campaign with Espanyol before finishing his career in Ukraine and Malta.
In 2010, he became the Director of Football at Cypriot club AEK Larnaca before taking on a similar role with Maccabi Tel Aviva, where he’s been since March 2012.