Preview:
Four days after the emphatic victory over Maccabi Jaffa in the State Cup, Maccabi Tel Aviv returned to Bloomfield stadium for the MD22 WINNER League match against Maccabi Bnei Reineh. Maccabi’s Head Coach, Ronny Deila, who beat Kiryat Shmona 4-1 in his debut match in charge at Netanya and added a 5-0 win over second division side Jaffa at Bloomfield, will aim to continue his 100% record against bottom of the table Bnei Reineh.
The Norwegian, who is missing Heitor dos Santos through suspension, didn’t make too many changes to his starting line-up. Raz Shlomo returned to partner Tyrese Asante at the heart of defense, as the duo lined up in front of goalkeeper Ofek Melika. Noam Ben Harush and Roy Revivo at right and left back respectively completed Maccabi’s back-four.
Itamar Noy in the anchorman role, was joined by Maccabi’s top goal scorers Ido Shahar and Dor Peretz who led the team out with the captain’s armband. After marking his Bloomfield debut with two goals against Jaffa in the Cup, Emir Sahiti, was named on one wing with Helio Varela on the opposite flank. Having scored in his last two outings, Saied Abu Farchi, whose tally currently stands on seven goals in all competitions, led the line.
On the bench, Deila welcomed back, Kristijan Belic, who recovered from his cheekbone injury yet is wearing a protective mask. Goalkeeper Roi Mishpati, Kervin Andrade, Sagiv Jehezkel, Yonas Malede, Elad Madmon, Issouf Sissokho, Itay Ben Hemo and Osher Davida completed the substitutes on the bench.
Prior to kickoff, a minute of applause was held in memory of Maccabi basketball owner David Federman, who was also a member of the football club’s ownership group in the 1990s, after he passed away at the age of 81.
First half:
Ronny Deila received a warm welcoming reception from Maccabi’s fans who cheered the team on right from the off. Maccabi dominated the opening stages pinning Reineh inside their own half and spreading the ball from side to side. Helio Varela on the right and Emir Sahiti on the left tormented the visitors’ defense but couldn’t create an opening. In the 12th minute a Noam Ben Harush’s pinpoint cross found Saied Abu Farchi whose header narrowly missed the target. Two minutes later Sahiti played Dor Peretz clear through as Maccabi’s captain burst forward but Reineh’s keeper, Lior Gliklich, charged off his line and dived at the feet of the Maccabi captain to collect.
Maccabi continued to press forward in an attempt to find an opening as Varela and Itamar Noy exchanged passes before the Cape Verde winger had his effort blocked. But in the 19th minute Peretz went down in the box clutching his face following a corner that Gliklich seemed to have punched away. Referee Yigal Frid was called by the VAR to the screen and awarded Maccabi a penalty as the Reineh keeper didn’t make any contact with the ball. Abu Farchi stepped up and slotted in the spot kick to put Maccabi in front with his 8th goal of the season.
A minute before the half hour mark Maccabi had the ball in the back of the visitors’ net as Sahiti drilled in a powerful low drive that found the bottom far corner. But the referee assistant raised his flag for an offside against Varela as the goal was scratched off. Four minutes later the Kosovo international continued to look dangerous as Abu Farchi slipped him in but this time Sahiti’s effort sailed wide.
Second half:
With no changes to either side at the restart it was the visitors who came closer to score after the interval. A Ben Harush mistake gifted Reineh the ball before Mohamad Shaker was given the time and space to blast a shot which beat Ofek Melika but struck the post. Two minutes later Vitalie Damascan forced Melika to make a save as he punched away a dangerous shot which dipped right in front of him. But in the 51st minute Maccabi doubled their lead at the opposite end as Abu charged half the length of the pitch before picking Sahiti on the right. The winger still had his work cut for himself as his shot which took a slight deflection to beat Gliklich for his debut league goal and three in two outings.
Maccabi’s blitz continues two minutes later with Abu Farchi adding another assist this time for Roy Revivo who drilled in his second league goal in succession to make it 3-0.
Three minutes after the hour mark, Varela who had one attempt narrowly miss the target, had another effort turned for a corner. Maccabi continued to press in an attempt to score a fourth while Reineh’s defended a series of four corners. In the 67th minute the 19,733 fans at Bloomfield were on their feet as Deila introduced Osher Davida and Kristijan Belic for Shahar and Varela. Belic’s name echoed around the Jaffa stadium as fans welcomed back the Serbian combative midfielder with the mask. The impact of Belic was almost instant as Peretz reached two good chances to score but Gliklich managed to deny him on both occasions.
A missed Tyrese Asante clearance in the 79th minute allowed Damascan to break through, but Melika charged off his line as the two players suffered from the head collision. With Melika on the ground a Reineh player rolled the ball in, but VAR called Frid to the screen and this goal was cancelled as well. Deila made a triple substitution as Ben Harush, Noy and Abu Farchi bowed out to a standing ovation and were replaced on 82 by Sagiv Jehezkel, Issouf Sissokho and Yonas Malede. Three minutes after his introduction, Malede, swept home a Revivo accurate square ball to end a two-year long drought as his previous goal was scored on February 10th, 2024.
Inside injury time Peretz could have made with a close range header but Gliklich pulled a stunning reflex save to deny the Maccabi captain before the full time whistle was heard.
