Elad Madmon’s second half penalty against Kiryat Shmona helped Maccabi to a 3-1 victory at Bloomfield last week that ended Maccabi’s run of five winless matches in all competitions. While this was Madmon’s third goal this season in all competitions it was his first league goal of the current campaign and third in the league since joining Maccabi at the start of last season. The 21-year-old who kept his calm to score the penalty that helped Maccabi climb back to second in the table and record their fifth league win in seven matches, said ahead of Saturday’s match against Bnei Reineh that beat Maccabi twice last season in the league and State Cup: “Reineh are a strong team. We saw that last season when we lost to them twice at Bloomfield. That doesn’t happen often, and we’re preparing for them in a very good and focused way. We’ll come ready and try to win this match as well.”
On the atmosphere in the camp following Maccabi’s recent victory, Madmon said: “Inside the dressing room, we are focused only on football and on being together. We even had a team-bonding evening a few days ago, it was fun and helped us connect. Maybe from the outside people are trying to create stories that are not true. But we are focused on ourselves and taking it game by game.”
Madmon, who scored twice in the European qualifying campaign earlier this summer, ended a run of 13 matches in all competitions without finding the back of the net: “In the seventh round, I scored my goal, something was released in me, and it was a really great feeling. I think you could see it on my face when the ball went in. I was very happy to contribute my part to the game, and now it’s about maintaining consistency and playing the way we know how.”
The 21-year-old who played in various positions upfront added: “First of all, I am very happy that I can play in several positions and that the coach shows he believes I can do that. I think I understand what he wants from me in those roles, and when I get the opportunity, I’ll give 100% no matter where I play.”
On Maccabi’s run of five matches in all competitions without recording a victory, Madmon deflected the criticism by saying: “Going five matches without a win at Maccabi Tel Aviv isn’t something that happens often. So yes, it was on the players’ minds, and once we finally got that win, we really enjoyed the moment in the dressing room, it felt great. Now we’ll try to keep the momentum going and get another victory in the next match.”
