Omer Niron

Omer Ya'acov Nir'on (; born 17 April 2001) is an Israeli professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Israeli club Maccabi Haifa on loan from Maccabi Netanya. He has previously played for Israeli clubs Bnei Yehuda and Hapoel Ramat HaSharon as well as Bosnian club Zrinjski Mostar. He has also represented Israel internationally at youth level. He is the son of retired Israeli footballer Danny Nir'on.

Club career Youth career Nir'on started his career with Maccabi Tel Aviv's boys' team. He also played in his youth with Shimshon Tel Aviv and Maccabi Herzliya before joining the youth team of Bnei Yehuda when he was 16. Bnei Yehuda signed him on a 5-year contract.

Bnei Yehuda Nir'on made his debut senior appearance for Bnei Yehuda on 18 August 2018, in a Toto Cup game against Bnei Sakhnin. He kept a clean sheet, but they lost the subsequent penalty shootout. His Israeli Premier League debut appearance was on 25 May 2019, during a 2–1 loss against Hapoel Hadera. but he didn't register any match time with them and returned from loan in January 2020. but unfortunately they were relegated at the end of the season to the Liga Leumit. Nir'on gathered interest overseas, especially in Denmark, where he has a local passport through his family, and he impressed Lars Høgh, goalkeeping coach for Brøndby and Denmark, who recommended him for Nordsjælland, where he went for a two week trial as well as with the Danish national youth team. Despite the club's interest in signing him on a long-term deal, in the end Nir'on declined the offer. In July 2023, Nir'on secured a loan with an option to buy to Bosnian defending champions Zrinjski Mostar, but he registered there only one appearance in which he conceded three goals and was recalled in January.

Maccabi Netanya In January 2024, Nir'on was loaned to Maccabi Netanya, with a half-million buyout option. He made his debut for the club on 24 February against Beitar Jerusalem, keeping a clean sheet in a 0–0 draw. In April 2024, the club opted to pay the buyout clause and permanently sign Nir'on.

International career Israel under-19 In November 2018, Nir'on was called up for the Israel under-19 squad to play in the qualifying round of the 2019 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifiers. He played in the 4–1 victory over Azerbaijan and the 2–1 victory over Liechtenstein. In March 2019, he was called-up again for the squad to play in the elite round. He took part in the 3–0 victory over Switzerland.

In October 2019, Nir'on was called up once more for the squad, to play in the qualifying round of the 2020 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifiers. He played in the 0–0 draw with Latvia and the 2–0 loss to Netherlands.

Israel under-21 In September 2021, Nir'on was called up for the Israel under-21 squad to play in the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifiers. Due to regular starting goalkeeper Daniel Peretz being called-up to the senior squad, Nir'on started the match against Germany and despite losing 3–2, he received plaudits and the coach Alon Hazan said he trusts him 100%. He then started the next match against Latvia which they won 2–1, with Nir'on making some key saves. After that he also played and kept clean sheets in the 4–0 victory over San Marino and the 3–0 victory over Hungary.

2024 Olympic Games Following a good start to his time at Maccabi Netanya, Nir'on was called up as the alternate goalkeeper for Israel's Olympic football team competing in the men's tournament in the 2024 Summer Olympics. On 18 July 2024, it was announced that the team's starting goalkeeper, Daniel Peretz, was withdrawn from the squad due to injury and Nir'on was promoted to the 18-player squad. Due to an injury to the team's goalkeeper Niv Eliasi, Nir'on started the first match of the Olympics group stage against Mali. The match ended in a 1–1 draw, and he received positive feedback after a strong performance including 5 saves. Following this, the coach Guy Luzon said that Nir'on would start the next match against Paraguay. Despite losing the match 4–2, Nir'on was chosen as Israel's best player on the field. He also played in Israel's last match of the tournament against Japan, in which he made some great saves before conceding in injury time, leaving the scoreline at 1–0. Despite the team being eliminated in the group stage, Nir'on received positive comments and was lauded for the many saves he made during the tournament.

Personal life Nir'on is the son of retired professional Israeli footballer Danny Nir'on. Due to this, Nir'on also holds a Danish passport and is eligible to represent them internationally.