Ukrainian Bilenkyi left Israel for ‘Žalgiris’ — what is known about the transfer, career, and his Israeli stage

Ukrainian forward Stanislav Bilenkyi has completed the Israeli stage of his career and moved to Lithuania. Vilnius “Žalgiris” officially announced an agreement with the 27-year-old forward, who spent the last seasons in the Israeli championship and is now expected to strengthen the attack of one of the most famous clubs in Lithuanian football. According to “Žalgiris,” the player has already arrived in Vilnius, passed a medical examination, and signed a contract; he can be registered for the new club from June 15.

This was reported by Ukrainian sports media on May 23, 2026.

For the Israeli audience, this news is interesting not only as a regular transfer. Bilenkyi spent an important part of his career in Israel: he played for “Maccabi” Netanya and “Ironi” Tiberias, adapted to the local championship, gained stable practice, and left for Lithuania not as a random legionnaire, but as a player with experience in the Israeli Premier League.

From Israel to Vilnius: what happened

“Žalgiris” reported that Stanislav Bilenkyi became a reinforcement for the club’s attacking line. In the new club, he chose the number 19. “Žalgiris” sports director Gedrius Kleivinskas specifically noted that the Ukrainian comes from a strong Israeli championship, where last season he was a main squad player.

According to the Lithuanian club, in the 2025/26 season for “Ironi” Tiberias, Bilenkyi played 28 matches, scored 6 goals, and made 1 assist. For the forward, this is not a record, but a working statistic: he did not fall out of the lineup, was useful in movement, and remained part of the team’s attacking structure.

Kleivinskas described Bilenkyi as a versatile forward capable of playing in different attacking positions. The club emphasizes his speed, technique, and understanding of the game. For “Žalgiris,” it is also important that the Ukrainian is already accustomed to changing countries and football environments, so adaptation in Vilnius should not be a serious problem for him.

Why this is not just a club change

Bilenkyi’s transfer shows how the Israeli championship continues to work as a transit platform for players from Ukraine and Eastern Europe. Israel provides legionnaires with a competitive environment, a tight schedule, a high emotional level of matches, and the opportunity to remain visible to European clubs.

For the player himself, Lithuania may become a new career window. “Žalgiris” is a club with European ambitions, and for a forward who has already played in Ukraine, Slovakia, Poland, Belarus, Georgia, and Israel, another international stage seems like a logical continuation of the path.

Who is Stanislav Bilenkyi: the path from Donetsk through Europe

Stanislav Bilenkyi was born on August 22, 1998, in Donetsk. His football base is connected with Donetsk schools: he trained in the academies of “Shakhtar” and “Olimpik.” Later, it was “Olimpik” that became his first professional club.

In Ukrainian football, Bilenkyi gained prominence early as a youth-level forward. In the 2016/17 season, he became the top scorer of the Ukrainian youth championship, and already in May 2017, he debuted in the Ukrainian Premier League for “Olimpik” in a match against Luhansk “Zorya.”

A separate detail of his biography is a European cup goal for “Olimpik” in the Europa League qualification against Greek PAOK. For the young forward, this was an important moment: he not only reached the international level but immediately marked himself with a productive action in a match where the pressure was higher than in a regular championship.

After the Ukrainian start, Bilenkyi began to actively play abroad. His career included DAC Dunajská Streda in Slovakia, Polish “Zagłębie” Sosnowiec, Lviv “Rukh,” Brest “Dynamo,” Tbilisi “Dynamo,” and then Israel. Such geography shows a player who did not build his career in a straight line but constantly sought playing practice and new opportunities.

Georgian title and Ukraine U-21 national team

Before Israel, one of the most successful foreign stages for Bilenkyi was Georgia. In 2022, he played for Tbilisi “Dynamo,” became the champion of Georgia, and scored 10 goals in the national championship. For the forward, it was a strong season: a title, a stable role, and productivity in a new league.

Bilenkyi also played for Ukraine’s youth national teams. According to “Žalgiris,” he played 7 matches and scored 2 goals for Ukraine U-21. This is an important part of his profile: it is not just about a club legionnaire, but a player who went through the Ukrainian national team system.

For NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency in this story, such context is important: Ukrainian footballers after 2022 are increasingly becoming part of international routes, where Israel becomes not a periphery but a full-fledged stage of a career. Bilenkyi is one such example.

How Bilenkyi ended up in Israel and how he played here

Bilenkyi appeared in Israel in 2023 when he began playing in the local top league. First, he played for “Maccabi” Netanya, then moved to “Ironi” Tiberias. According to “Žalgiris,” in the Israeli Premier League for these two clubs, he played a total of 99 matches and scored 16 goals.

This period was not the most media-prominent for him, but quite substantial. In Netanya, he entered Israeli football, got used to the rhythm of the championship, the style of defenders, and the requirements of local clubs. Then in “Ironi” Tiberias, he received a clearer role and in the last season remained a player the coaching staff regularly relied on.

Israeli football for a forward is a challenging environment. There is a lot of struggle, quick transitions from defense to attack, emotional stadiums, and a very noticeable difference between team styles. A forward must not only score but also open up between the lines, cling to balls, help in pressing, and withstand physical contact.

What he gave to “Ironi” Tiberias

In “Ironi” Tiberias, Bilenkyi was not a superstar of the championship but became a useful attacking player. His statistics for the season — 28 matches, 6 goals, and 1 assist — indicate that he regularly participated in the team’s game and maintained productivity at a working level.

More importantly: the Lithuanian club takes him precisely after a season in Israel, and “Žalgiris” sports director directly calls the Israeli championship strong. This means that Bilenkyi’s experience in Israel is perceived in Vilnius as a plus, not as a passing episode.

For “Ironi” Tiberias, his departure is part of the usual transfer process. For the Ukrainian footballer, it’s a chance to restart his career in Europe again. For Israeli football, it’s another confirmation that the local league remains noticeable on the international player market map.

Why “Žalgiris” might have chosen him

Bilenkyi fits the profile of a forward who can cover several tasks at once. He is a central forward but not limited to the penalty area. He is accustomed to different championships, different language environments, and different coach requirements.

“Žalgiris” has a clear logic: to take a player with European and Israeli experience, who has already gone through adaptation abroad and does not require a long explanation of what competition for a place in the lineup is. Moreover, registration from June 15 gives the club time to integrate the newcomer into the training process before full use in matches.

For Bilenkyi himself, this is also a moment of choice. After Israel, he could look for an option in a similar league, but Lithuania offers a different route: a club with a name, a European showcase, a new country, and a chance to become more noticeable for the market again.

What this transfer means for Ukrainians in Israel

Bilenkyi’s story is interesting to the Ukrainian community in Israel because it shows a living connection between Ukrainian sports and the Israeli football environment. This is not politics or diplomacy, but a more everyday level of contacts: clubs, contracts, adaptation, stadiums, fans, career decisions.

For Ukrainians who permanently reside in Israel and for those who ended up here after Russia’s invasion in 2022, such sports stories often become an additional point of recognition. A Ukrainian player performed in the Israeli league, spent an important stage here, and now moved on — already with experience gained specifically in Israel.

In this sense, Bilenkyi’s departure to “Žalgiris” is not a break but a continuation of the route. Israel remains in his professional biography as a country where he played almost a hundred matches in the top division, scored, competed, and got a new European chance.

Now the main question is how quickly he will integrate into “Žalgiris” football. If the Ukrainian confirms in Lithuania the qualities mentioned by the club’s sports director, the Israeli stage will be remembered as an important step, not as a stop between more noticeable career points.