Preview
Maccabi arrived at the Netanya stadium for the MD25 match away to bottom of the table Hapoel Hadera aiming to bounce back and return to winning ways. Maccabi’s Head Coach Zarko Lazetic made three changes from the side which suffered a 1-0 defeat to Maccabi Bnei Reineh at Bloomfield. Idan Nachmias was back from his one-match-touchline ban while Tyrese Asante and Issouf Sissokho were both sidelined after collecting five yellow cards.
Simon Sluga kept his place in goal with Nachmias on his 100th Maccabi appearance partnered Nemanja Stojic as the two central defenders in front of the Croatian goalkeeper. Stav Lemkin on the right and Roy Revivo on the left completed Maccabi’s back-four. Joris van Overeem replaced Sissokho in the anchorman role just behind Gabi Kanichowsky and Dor Peretz. Osher Davida returned to the side at the expense of Henry Addo while Weslley Patati was named on the opposite flank. Dor Turgeman led the line aiming to add to his 10 league and 14 in all competitions.
On the bench Lazetic named goalkeeper Roi Mishpati, Eran Zahavi, Raz Shlomo, Yonas Malede, Elad Madmon, Henry Addo, Ofir Davidzada, Hisham Layous and Ido Shahar.
First Half
Boosted by the vocal support of around 5000 travelling fans, Maccabi began the match on the front foot enjoying most of the possession. In the fifth minute however Hadera crossed the halfway line for the first time only for Simon Sluga to prevent the hosts from taking the lead. José Cortés spotted Sluga off his line as he attempted a shot from long range, but the Croatian custodian managed to track back before pulling a fingertip save to turn the ball over the crossbar. Four minutes later at the opposite end Gabi Kanichowsky sent a dangerous low shot from the edge of the area but Hadera’s keeper, Ohad Levita, stretched himself to save for a corner. Cortez had another close-range header in the 12th minute cleared by Stav Lemkin from the goalmouth and over the bar following a Menashe Zalka free kick. But from the resulting corner Hadera took the lead as Lisav Eissat rose above Maccabi’s defense to head Zalka’s corner past Sluga. Maccabi kept dominating the possession as Weslley Patati slipped Roy Revivo into the box but the full-back’s attempt of a cross was blocked by Levita. Dor Peretz tried a half volley from outside the box but once again Levita was there to punch the ball away.
While Maccabi kept pushing forward in a bid to level the score, a lethal Hadera counterattack in the 26th minute saw the hosts double their lead. Cortés turned provider as he burst down the right and sent a square ball which was fired in by James Adeniyi to give Hadera a 2-0 lead. Two minutes later Hadera came close to increase their lead even further, but the post denied Godsway Donyoh saving Maccabi from conceding a third. Six minutes after the half hour mark, Maccabi managed to cut the deficit as an initial Osher Davida shot was blocked before his second attempt rolled beyond the reach of Levita to make it 2-1.
Second Half
Lazetic made a double substitution at halftime with Raz Shlomo and Elad Madmon replacing Stav Lemkin and Roy Revivo at the restart. As a result, Nachmias moved across the defense and pushed to right back while Madmon took up a role alongside Dor Turgeman upfront.
In the 56th minute a Weslley Patati cross into the area was headed by Peretz but easily collected by Levita who earlier intercepted a Davida square ball. Five minutes after the hour mark the Patati and Peretz combination led to Maccabi’s equalizer as the skipper headed in the Brazilian’s corner to go back on level terms. In the 75th minute Davida flicked the ball into the path of Dor Turgeman who lost his marker with a drop of the shoulder before snapping a shot which Levita clawed out from under the crossbar. Three minutes later Turgeman released Madmon into the box. The former Hadera 21-year-old forward who was clear on goal with only Levita to beat, was pushed in the back by Eissat before he could get a chance to shoot. Referee Ohad Asulin didn’t award a penalty but a couple of minutes later VAR called him to the screen. The initial decision was overturned, Maccabi were given a penalty with Eissat shown a red card. Turgeman stepped up, sent Levita the wrong way as he blasted the spot kick into the bottom corner to complete the comeback. Lazetic made another double change on 88 as Turgeman and Patati both bowed out and were replaced by Yonas Malede and Ofir Davidzada.
After the five minutes of added time were finished, the full time whistle confirmed Maccabi’s victory keeping the title race back in tact.
