Preview
Four days after their emphatic 4-0 victory over Hapoel Petah Tikva, Maccabi returned to Bloomfield stadium for the WINNER League MD32 local derby against arch city rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv. Six points separate the two sides in the table as Maccabi are third with 61 points while Hapoel are fourth with 55. After the first derby of the season on MD7 was abandoned and Maccabi were awarded a 3-0 victory by default, the second meeting was in the State Cup round of 16 which ended 1-1 before Maccabi advanced on penalties. Hapoel won the MD20 league fixture 2-1 to end Maccabi’s 12-year-long unbeaten run before Dor Peretz earned Maccabi a 1-0 victory at the start of the Playoffs.
Kenny Miller, who was appointed interim Head Coach following the departure of Ronny Deila, is far from short of experience in derbies as the 46-year-old Scotsman featured and scored for both Rangers and Celtic in the Old Firm.
Miller, kept an almost unchanged team to the side that beat Peta Tikva in midweek except for Elad Madmon who replaced Saied Abu Farchi upfront.
Ofek Melika started in goal behind a defense that was unchanged as Ali Camara and Raz Shlomo lined up at the heart of defense and Tyrese Asante and Roy Revivo as the full backs. With Issouf Sissokho serving his second suspension, Itamar Noy, Ido Shahar and Dor Peretz were Maccabi’s midfield trio. On the wings, Miller kept Helio Varela and Emir Sahiti with Madmon leading the side.
On the bench, Miller named goalkeeper Roi Mishpati, Heitor dos Santos, Kervin Andrade, Sagiv Jehezkel, Kristijan Belic, Noam Ben Harosh, Ben Lederman, Saied Abu Farchi, and Itai Ben Hamo.
First Half
Pyrotechnics display from both ends of the stadium caused a delay to kick-off as the match eventually got underway seven minutes later than originally scheduled. Hapoel had the ball in the back of the net as a Maccabi lost possession inside their half before Loizos Loizou charged forward and released Emmanuel Boateng who went down after a tackle by Tyrese Asante. Stav Turiel latched on the loose ball, rounded Ofek Melika, and blasted home. But Hapoel’s celebrations were short-lived as referee Snir Levy spotted an Asante foul on Boateng before and awarded a penalty. Turiel stepped up to take the spot kick, but Melika dived to his right and pulled a stunning save before making another save to deny Doron Leidner’s rebound and keep his goal locked. In the 14th minute Asante lost possession near the corner of the area and Itamar Noy gave a foul which Turiel crossed to the back post. Fernand Mayembo rose above Maccabi’s defense but guided his header over Melika’s goal.
In the 25th minute the deadlock was finally broken as Roy Revivo received the ball inside Maccabi’s half on the left, skipped past a challenge, and cut towards the center circle. The 22-year-old left back who already had 11 assists to his name, carved Hapoel’s defense with a pinpoint perfectly weighed pass into the path of Dor Peretz. Maccabi’s captain controlled the pass before drilling in an accurate shot which beat Assaf Tzur to take his tally to 15 league goals. Ido Shahar was cautioned by the referee for dissent and Asante joined him shortly after as the Dutch defender was booked for a clumsy tackle on 41.
Second half
Kenny Miller was forced to make a double change at the restart as Revivo who suffered a back injury was replaced by Sagiv Jehezkel at left back. Shahar who carried a booking was replaced by Kristijan Belic in midfield. Four minutes into the second half Hapoel came close as Loizou was left unmarked at the far post, but Melika pulled a fingertip save to keep out the header of the diminutive Cypriot.
Hapoel looked dangerous as Turiel blasted a left foot drive which cleared the crossbar on 54. Loizou also tried his luck from outside the box two minutes later, but Melika collected. A minute before the hour mark, Miller made another double change as Emir Sahiti bowed out and was replaced by Kervin Andrade while Saied Abu Farchi came on for Elad Madmon.
Hapoel were back on level terms in the 87th minute as substitute Roy Korine received the ball outside the box before curling a left foot shot beyond Melika’s reach to make it 1-1. Miller made his fifth and final change as Heitor dos Santos came on for Raz Shlomo in the 90th minute before the fourth official raised his sign for 5 minutes of additional time. Mor Buskila rifled a shot from inside the box, but Melika managed to punch out for a corner that was cleared. The full-time whistle ended the contest and as the points were shared tension was high with both sets of players exchanging some greetings on the way to the dressing rooms.
