- July 19, 2026
- 1:38 pm
- Israel, Ukraine
“Maccabi” Haifa indeed took concrete steps to sign the 28-year-old Ukrainian national team midfielder Oleksiy Hutsulyak. However, as of July 19, 2026, the player remains a free agent, with no official agreement announced with any Israeli, Turkish, or Arab club.
The story developed over several weeks: first, Hutsulyak ended his cooperation with Zhytomyr’s “Polissya”, then information about “Maccabi’s” interest appeared in Israel, and on July 16, the player’s agent first detailed the negotiations with clubs from Israel, Turkey, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Summer 2024: Hutsulyak moves to “Polissya”
Oleksiy Hutsulyak joined Zhytomyr’s “Polissya” in the summer of 2024 after leaving “Dnipro-1”. The contract was for two years — until the end of June 2026.
During this time, the Ukrainian winger became one of the key players of the team.
Together with Hutsulyak, “Polissya” won the first bronze medals in the club’s history in the Ukrainian Premier League in the 2024/25 season. According to “Suspilne Sport”, he played 65 matches for the Zhytomyr team over two years, scored 20 goals, and made 10 assists. Some other sports sources account for 21 goals and 11 assists, so the differences are likely due to the methodology of counting tournaments and assists.
In the 2025/26 season, Hutsulyak played 25 matches in the Ukrainian Premier League and scored eight goals. His last championship game for “Polissya” took place on May 12, 2026, against “Epicenter”.
January 2026: conflict over transfer to U-19
On January 13, 2026, it became known that “Polissya” transferred Hutsulyak from the main team to the youth squad U-19.
Publicly, the club did not link this decision to contract negotiations, but Ukrainian media speculated that this might have been a way to pressure the player due to his reluctance to sign a new agreement.
Already on January 18, 2026, Hutsulyak was returned to training with the first team.
The management of “Polissya” explained this by the interests of the Ukrainian national team: in March, the national team had decisive playoff matches for the 2026 World Cup qualification, and Hutsulyak was one of its most productive players.
Later, the player’s agent, Oleh Avdysh, refused to directly answer whether the transfer to U-19 was an attempt at pressure. He stated that “Polissya” and Hutsulyak gave a lot to each other and that the player’s representatives do not want to return to negative moments.
End of June — July 1, 2026: contract completed
Hutsulyak’s contract with “Polissya” expired at the end of June 2026.
On July 1, 2026, the player officially bid farewell to the Zhytomyr club on social media. He emphasized that he spent exactly two years with the team and became part of the historic achievement — “Polissya’s” first bronze medals in the Ukrainian Premier League.
After the contract ended, Hutsulyak gained free agent status.
This means that a new club does not need to pay “Polissya” a transfer fee. However, the player himself may demand a higher salary, signing bonuses, and more favorable personal terms.
Later, Oleh Avdysh explained that Hutsulyak refused a new agreement not because of a desire to move to another Ukrainian club. According to the agent, the player had long planned to continue his career abroad and try his hand in a new championship.
July 4, 2026: interest from “Maccabi” first reported in Israel
On July 4, 2026, at 19:04, the Israeli publication Walla Sport reported that “Maccabi” Haifa was considering signing Hutsulyak.
At that time, it was about the club’s interest, not an agreed contract or official offer. Israeli journalists noted that teams from Belgium, Turkey, and the Gulf countries were also interested in the Ukrainian.
The publication from July 4 stated that Hutsulyak was not in a hurry to make a final decision and hoped to receive new offers after the 2026 World Cup.
At the same time, Israeli media cited his statistics for the Ukrainian national team: 16 matches and six goals. For “Polissya” in all tournaments of the 2025/26 season, he recorded nine goals and seven assists.
Thus, “Maccabi’s” interest arose or, at least, became public after Hutsulyak gained free agent status.
July 16, 2026: agent confirmed Israel’s concrete step
The main source of this story appeared on July 16, 2026, at 08:18.
It was then that the publication “Ukrainian Football” published a large interview with Hutsulyak’s agent, Oleh Avdysh. The player’s representative first detailed the teams and championships with which negotiations were conducted.
Avdysh confirmed serious interest from the Turkish “Kocaelispor”. According to him, this club was actively working on the possible transfer of Hutsulyak.
Besides “Kocaelispor”, three other Turkish teams were interested in the Ukrainian at that time. The agent named “Konyaspor” and “Chorum” but refused to disclose the name of the fourth club. Another team, which was in the top five of the Turkish championship at that time, also joined the negotiations.
To a direct question about “Anderlecht” and “Maccabi” Haifa, Avdysh replied:
“It’s ‘Anderlecht’. The Brussels team indeed showed serious interest, but their financial capabilities do not meet Oleksiy’s demands. The Israeli side also took a concrete step.”
Therefore, on July 16, the agent confirmed that there was not only preliminary interest from Israel but also a concrete action. However, he did not disclose the amount or specify whether it was a written offer, salary agreement, or the start of official negotiations.
Avdysh added that the most likely scenario is a move to Turkey or one of the Arab championships.
How much Hutsulyak wanted to earn
In the interview from July 16, the agent was directly asked about reports that Hutsulyak’s financial demands range from one to two million dollars a year.
Oleh Avdysh confirmed that this amount is close to reality. According to him, there are clubs on the market capable of meeting such demands.
For “Maccabi” Haifa, such a contract would mean turning the Ukrainian into one of the highest-paid players on the team.
However, the exact amount offered by the Israeli club was not publicly disclosed. Therefore, claims of specific 700, 800 thousand, or one million euros do not have sufficient official confirmation.
The agent also emphasized that salary is not the only criterion. For Hutsulyak, it is fundamentally important to choose a club whose performances will allow him to remain in the field of view of the Ukrainian national team’s coaching staff.
July 18, 2026: Israeli media announced that “Maccabi” lost the financial battle
On July 18, 2026, at 09:57, Walla Sport returned to Hutsulyak’s story and published an article with the headline: “Hutsulyak’s agent: ‘Maccabi’ Haifa did not match the received offers”.
This version was also spread by other Israeli sports publications, including Sport1.
The Israeli publication claimed that “Maccabi” could not offer financial conditions comparable to the offers from clubs in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
However, there is an important nuance here.
In the original interview from July 16, the agent directly mentioned the mismatch of financial capabilities only concerning “Anderlecht”. Regarding “Maccabi” Haifa, he only stated that the Israeli side took a “concrete step”.
Therefore, the phrase that “Maccabi” could not match the competitors’ offers is logical but still an Israeli interpretation of the agent’s words, not his verbatim statement in the Ukrainian source.
Nevertheless, the overall conclusion seems obvious: if the conditions of the Israeli club suited the player, “Maccabi” would remain among the main contenders. By July 18, Turkey and the Gulf countries had already gained the advantage.
July 18: offer from “Al-Wasl” appeared
Also on July 18, 2026, Ukrainian media reported an offer from the “Al-Wasl” club from the United Arab Emirates.
According to Football24, citing the “TaToTake” project, the club was ready to offer Hutsulyak about 1.5 million euros per season. Officially, “Al-Wasl” did not confirm this information.
This amount corresponds to the range of one to two million dollars, which the player’s agent confirmed on July 16.
It is the clubs from the UAE and Saudi Arabia that have the ability to offer conditions that are difficult for not only “Maccabi” Haifa but also many European teams to compete with.
July 19: “Konyaspor” dropped out of the race
On the morning of July 19, 2026, new information about the Turkish direction appeared.
Sport.ua reported that “Konyaspor” is not actually working on signing Hutsulyak and that the Ukrainian’s name is not on the team’s transfer list.
This message contradicts the agent’s words from July 16, who confirmed “Konyaspor’s” interest.
There are two possible explanations: either the situation changed within three days, or the initial interest did not turn into real negotiations. In any case, as of July 19, the option with “Konyaspor” was no longer considered relevant.
At the same time, the information about the interest of “Kocaelispor”, “Chorum”, an unnamed Turkish club, and a team from the top five of the Turkish championship was not officially refuted.
Who is Oleksiy Hutsulyak
Oleksiy Hutsulyak was born on December 25, 1997 in Krasyliv, Khmelnytskyi region.
He is 187 centimeters tall. His main position is a flank midfielder or winger. He can play on the right, left, and closer to the center of the attack.
During his career, Hutsulyak played for Lviv’s “Karpaty”, Chernihiv’s “Desna”, “Dnipro-1”, and Zhytomyr’s “Polissya”. He also had a period in the structure of the Spanish “Villarreal”, but he did not play for the main team of the Spanish club.
The player has 16 matches and six goals for the Ukrainian national team. In 2025, he became the top scorer of the Ukrainian national team, scoring five goals.
Main conclusion
The interest of “Maccabi” Haifa in Oleksiy Hutsulyak was real.
It was not just a name on the list of potential newcomers: the player’s agent confirmed that the Israeli side took a concrete step.
However, by mid-July 2026, the financial bar had risen to a level where “Maccabi” had to compete with Turkish clubs and teams from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
For NAnews — Israel News, this story shows that Israeli clubs continue to closely monitor the Ukrainian market. One of the most productive players of the Ukrainian national team could indeed have ended up in Haifa, but the economic capabilities of the Gulf clubs and the Turkish championship pushed the Israeli option to the background.
As of July 19, 2026, Hutsulyak remains a free agent. “Maccabi” Haifa has effectively dropped out of the main contenders, but the player’s final decision and his new club have not yet been officially announced.