Shmuel Kozokin
# Shmuel Kozokin

Shmuel Kozokin (Hebrew: שמואל קוזוקין; born 16 November 1987) is an Israeli former footballer. Kozokin was a defender. He won a gold medal with Team Israel at the 2005 Maccabiah Games. He played for the Israel national under-19 football team, the Israel national under-21 football team, the Israel national football team, Beitar Jerusalem, Hapoel Kfar Saba, and Ironi Beit Shemesh. Today he is a sport teacher in high school.

## Biography

He was born in Moscow, Russia, in the USSR in 1987. When he was four years old his family immigrated to Israel and lives in Beit Shemesh. At the age on nine he joined a football school, and at the age of 14 joined the youth team of Beitar Jerusalem.

He was part of the Israeli team at the 2005 Maccabiah Games that won the football gold medal.

He played for the Israel national under-19 football team in 2005–06. With the youth team he won the 2005–06 Israeli youth-teams-cup, and he was brought up to the mature team. He was part of the mature squad, and at the same time played for the youth team, with whom he won the 2006–07 cup and championship, and was chosen youth player of the year. He was also part of the Israel national under-21 football team that reached the UEFA European Under-21 Championship (though he did not play in the tournament itself).

In the 2006–07 season, when the mature team won the state championship, he was mostly a bench player, but at the same time played for the youth team that won the state cup and championship, and was chosen youth player of the year. In the 2007–08 season when the team won both the state championship and the state cup he played in many games, especially at the end of the season. After that season he received a call to the Israel national football team.

From 2006-13 he played for Beitar Jerusalem. In January 2013, Kozokin transferred to Hapoel Kfar Saba. From 2013-15 he played for Ironi Beit Shemesh.

