Maccabi Haifa Defender Lorenzo Šimić Loaned to Italian Serie B Side Bari

Maccabi Haifa has announced the loan of Lorenzo Šimić to Bari, a Serie B club in Italy, for the upcoming season. Haifa will receive €100,000 in loan fees for the Croatian defender, with no option to buy included in the agreement. Šimić, who was informed by manager Barak Bakhar early in the summer preseason that he was not part of his plans and could leave, has returned to Italy and signed with Bari. Bari were in need of defensive reinforcements after losing all three of their opening matches, dropping to the bottom of the Serie B table. Šimić, who played several years in Italy before moving to Israel, spent time with Sampdoria, Empoli, Lecce, and Ascoli. He scored against Bari while playing for Ascoli two years ago. Šimić joined Maccabi Haifa last summer on a three-year contract, but his time in Israel was cut short after just one season.