Jordi Cruyff, the Yellow & Blue Head Coach along with midfielder Dor Peretz addressed the media at the prematch press conference ahead of tomorrow night’s contest at Beitar Jerusalem at Teddy Stadium, 21:00:
“It’s a very important game for us, for the points and for the pride. We will play against a team that will push and they are fighting for the title. They will go 200% and this is a test of our character and strength.”
Maccabi Netanya moving closer to Maccabi on the table:
“We need to look at what’s behind and not just in front. We know what we need to do. Everything is possible and we always have to fight as long as we’re in this mathematically.”
The Starting XI for the Beitar match:
“We will have to wait and see tomorrow. It’s a moment for our character, players who are hungry and those who have to fight. We lost points and with more effectiveness, we could have had more. But we were punished. Above all hard work.”
The challenges of playing Beitar:
“The pressure isn’t off and there is a team behind us who is winning games and are hot. The last match versus Beitar was ok, but they are a team with character, fans with passion and we have to match them.”
The last three matches:
“The last 3 games were all games that we could have won, we had more possession, shots and we just weren’t good enough when we had to be.”
Being lucky:
“Luck helps but in the end it’s about doing it when you have to under maximum pressure and we lost three games in a row which we haven’t done in a long time. This is a game of character.”
Coming up short:
“We have been irregular all season. We took the first position twice and the next game we lost points. We have done this over the last few seasons and it didn’t work as it hasn’t over the past few years. We tried to take the players out of their comfort zone. I thought we could fight for the title but over the last few games we came up short.”
Dor Peretz, the Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder also spoke about the upcoming match against Beitar while looking back at the last few games:
“I don’t think we’ve played poorly. There were key matches which could have taken us to a better place but we couldn’t do it and we fell the last three games.”
Improving:
“There’s always room to improve whether we win or lose. This game is what is most important right now and we are looking to take the three points.”
Good environment at training:
“We aren’t at a place where we want to be and we look at each other in the eyes but we aren’t where we what to be. We are moving ahead and a good environment in the training session is important.”
Focusing on Beitar:
“We are looking at Beitar and nothing else right now. This match is the most important game that we have and it’s the only thing in our mind. We are looking to take the 3 points.”
Pressure:
“At a club like Maccabi Tel Aviv there is always pressure no matter what. We always want to do the best that we can and pressure is an important factor for us.”
