Lior Asulin

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Lior Asulin
{{Nobold|{{Script/Hebrew|ליאור אסולין}}}}

| image =

| full_name =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1980|10|06|df=y}}

| birth_place = Ra'anana, Israel

| death_date = {{death date and age|2023|10|07|1980|10|06|df=y}}

| death_place = Re'im, Israel

| height = 1.71 m

| position = Striker

| youthyears1 = 1995–1997

| youthclubs1 = Maccabi Herzliya

| years1 = 1997–2007

| years2 = 2002–2003

| years3 = 2003–2004

| years4 = 2004–2006

| years5 = 2006–2007

| years6 = 2007–2008

| years7 = 2008

| years8 = 2008–2009

| years9 = 2009–2011

| years10 = 2011–2012

| years11 = 2012–2013

| years12 = 2013–2014

| years13 = 2014–2015

| years14 = 2015–2016

| years15 = 2016

| years16 = 2017

| clubs1 = Maccabi Herzliya

| clubs2 = → Maccabi Petah Tikva (loan)

| clubs3 = → Bnei Sakhnin (loan)

| clubs4 = → Beitar Jerusalem (loan)

| clubs5 = → Bnei Yehuda (loan)

| clubs6 = Hapoel Tel Aviv

| clubs7 = → Apollon Limassol (loan)

| clubs8 = Maccabi Petah Tikva

| clubs9 = Hapoel Be'er Sheva

| clubs10 = Hapoel Ramat Gan

| clubs11 = Hapoel Rishon LeZion

| clubs12 = Hapoel Petah Tikva

| clubs13 = Hapoel Ashkelon

| clubs14 = Hapoel Petah Tikva

| clubs15 = Hapoel Marmorek

| clubs16 = Hapoel Nazareth Illit

| caps1 = 128

| caps2 = 31

| caps3 = 28

| caps4 = 57

| caps5 = 30

| caps6 = 10

| caps7 = 8

| caps8 = 24

| caps9 = 23

| caps10 = 27

| caps11 = 23

| caps12 = 40

| caps13 = 15

| caps14 = 24

| caps15 = 2

| caps16 = 11

| goals1 = 48

| goals2 = 11

| goals3 = 10

| goals4 = 27

| goals5 = 13

| goals6 = 0

| goals7 = 1

| goals8 = 7

| goals9 = 11

| goals10 = 12

| goals11 = 8

| goals12 = 15

| goals13 = 8

| goals14 = 4

| goals15 = 0

| goals16 = 1

}}

Lior Asulin ({{langx|he|ליאור אסולין}}; 6 October 1980 – 7 October 2023) was an Israeli footballer who played as a striker. He was murdered during the Nova music festival massacre by Hamas militants in the attack which led to the outbreak of the Gaza war.

Career

{{expand section|his career from 2013 to 2017, as indicated in the infobox.|date=October 2023}}

= Maccabi Herzliya and Ariel Shaiman =

A native of Ra'anana, Israel, Asulin grew up in the youth system of Maccabi Herzliya and it was there that he made the jump to Israel's highest league, Israeli Premier League but did not last long as the club was relegated just two seasons after he made the first team.

In Liga Leumit Lior scored a league leading twenty-eight goals, so after the 2001–02 season, club chairman Ariel Shaiman loaned Lior out to clubs in the top league and signed him to a long term contract with Herzliya hoping to cash in on a large transfer fee.

During his seasons on loan, Lior has won the State Cup and established himself as one of the top Israeli strikers in the domestic league. Subsequently, after the end of the 2005–06 season, Herzliya chairman Ariel Shaiman disclosed to the media that he received lucrative offers from Olympique de Marseille and OGC Nice from France, from Russia, Turkey, three teams from Cyprus, and from a team in Greece for Asulin's services though nothing has ever come about from said offers.

After winning the State Cup with Bnei Sakhnin, he signed on loan for Beitar Jerusalem.

= Hapoel Tel Aviv and Apollon Limassol =

In June 2007, Asulin signed for a four-year contract with Hapoel Tel Aviv.

In January 2008 after a not-so-good time in Hapoel he signed for Apollon Limassol on loan.

= Hapoel Be'er Sheva and Hapoel Ramat Gan=

From 2009 to 2011 Lior played for Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Israeli Premier League.

On 17 August 2011, Asulin signed a contract with Hapoel Ramat Gan in Liga Leumit. Asulin helped them win the Leumit double as they won the Toto Cup and the league to secure promotion to the Premier League. He was the club's top scorer in that season, scoring in total 14 goals in all competitions.

{{Cite web|url = http://www.one.co.il/Article/184827.html|title = ליאור אסולין סיכם את תנאיו בהפועל רמת-גן|trans-title=Lior Asulin concluded his terms at Hapoel Ramat Gan |first=Lior |last=Timur |date = 10 August 2011|access-date = 4 February 2013|archive-date = 8 October 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231008162856/https://www.one.co.il/article/184827.html|url-status = live|language=he}}{{cite web |url=http://football.org.il/Clubs/Pages/TeamDetails.aspx?TEAM_ID=2175&SEASON_ID=13 |title=The Israel Football Association |website=football.org.il |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304134114/http://football.org.il/Clubs/Pages/TeamDetails.aspx?TEAM_ID=2175&SEASON_ID=13 |archive-date=4 March 2016}}

= Hapoel Rishon LeZion =

On 17 June 2012, after being released by Ramat Gan for poor behavior, he signed a new contract with Hapoel Rishon LeZion.{{Cite web|url=http://sports.walla.co.il/?w=/7/2542169|title=ליאור אסולין חתם לעונה בהפועל ראשון לציון - וואלה! ספורט|date=17 June 2012}} On 4 December 2012, he helped the club win their first trophy when he scored a goal and a penalty in the 2012–13 Toto Cup Leumit finals.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sport5.co.il/articles.aspx?FolderID=127&docID=133550&lang=HE|title=טוטו לאומית: ראשל''צ זכתה עם 4:5 על רעננה בפנדלים - ספורט 5|date=4 December 2012|access-date=4 February 2013|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092659/http://www.sport5.co.il/articles.aspx?FolderID=127&docID=133550&lang=HE|url-status=live}}

Death

On 7 October 2023, Asulin was attending a music festival in Re'im, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an attack on the festival during the first day of the Gaza war. He was among the 347 civilians killed during the attack.{{Cite news|date=8 October 2023 |title=כדורגלן העבר, ליאור אסולין, נרצח במסיבת הטבע בקיבוץ רעים |language=he |work=Ynet |url=https://www.ynet.co.il/sport/israelisoccer/article/hkmmm8j11p |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008103709/https://www.ynet.co.il/sport/israelisoccer/article/hkmmm8j11p |url-status=live }}

Honours

Toto Cup (Leumit): 2011, 2012[http://football.org.il/Archive/Articles/Pages/totocupleomitfinal_09october2011.aspx.aspx הפועל רמת גן זכתה בגביע הטוטו לאומית] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614224846/http://football.org.il/Archive/Articles/Pages/totocupleomitfinal_09october2011.aspx.aspx |date=14 June 2012 }} (Hapoel Ramat Gan won the National Toto Cup )
Liga Leumit: 2011–12