Following the convincing 5-0 victory over Hapoel Haifa on Saturday, Maccabi face a tough tie in the next round of the State Cup. A Tel Aviv derby against arch city rivals Hapoel await Maccabi in the round of 16 following the draw which took place at the IFA Headquarters on Sunday.

Ten teams from the top-flight and six teams from the national division went into the draw before former Maccabi striker Itay Shechter (2018-2021) who won the Cup at both clubs pulled Maccab’s name out. This will be the first time both teams meet this season and the first time in the Cup since the Cup Final victory in the 2020/21 season.

Round of 16 draw results: (matches to be played on January 13^th – 15^th):

Round of 16 draw:

Hapoel Tel Aviv – Maccabi Tel Aviv

Hapoel Petah Tikva – Maccabi Bnei Reineh

Maccabi Netanya – Maccabi Jaffa (2^nd)

Ironi Kiryat Shmona – Beitar Jerusalem

Hapoel Be’ersheva – Hapoel Jerusalem

Hapoel Ra’anana (2^nd) – Maccabi Haifa

Bnei Yehuda (2^nd) – Maccabi Herzliya (2^nd)

Kafr Qassem SC (2^nd) – Hapoel Kfar Saba (2^nd).

Davida, whose goals booked Maccabi’s place in Sunday’s Round of 16 State Cup draw which takes place at 11:00 said after the match: “Honestly, it’s impossible to explain how important this was for us as a team and for me personally. I am happy for us, and I hope this is the start of a new path.”

On ending a long spell where he didn’t find the back of the net which coincided with the recent sticky patch the team is experiencing, Davida added: “It is not easy when the goals don’t come and there are no assists. There were matches where I played well, but personally I don’t measure success by numbers, that’s football and that’s okay. I’m happy it finally happened, but we need to bring this into the league as well.”

After Maccabi advanced to the next stage of the Cup, attention will return to the league as Maccabi hosts Ironi Tiberias on Tuesday. “The pressure has been lifted. I hope we will see that on Tuesday. Right now we’re enjoying the victory, but already tomorrow there’s recovery, and on Monday we start preparing for Tiberias. I hope we bring this level into Tuesday’s match. This was very important, and I hope it sets us on a new path, the way you’re used to seeing us. We’re definitely still in the fight.”

Preview

Maccabi returned to Bloomfield stadium for the Round of 32 State Cup tie against Hapoel Haifa putting aside the weekly league fixtures in favor of a Cup campaign.

Head Coach Zarko Lazetic made several changes from the side which was held to a 2-2 by Maccabi Netanya. With Ali Mohamad serving his one match touchline ban, Lazetic named Raz Shlomo and Itay Ben Hemo as the two central defenders in front of goalkeeper Ofek Melika. Tyrese Asante on the right and Roy Revivo on the left completed Maccabi’s back-four. Issouf Sissokho in the anchorman role was joined by Ido Shahar in Maccabi’s engine room while Dor Peretz was named at the top of the midfield trio. Helio Varela and Osher Davida were named by Lazetic on both wings as the duo will try and supply ammunition for Saied Abu Farchi who led the line.

On the bench alongside goalkeeper Roi Mishpati, Lazetic named Heitor dos Santos, Kervin Andrade, Sagiv Jehezkel, Kristijan Belic, Elad Madmon, Noam Ben Harush, Itamar Noy and Ilay Ben Simon.

First Half

The rainy weather conditions effected the number of fans who arrived for this Cup tie as Bloomfield stadium was more than half empty despite the comfortable early kickoff time. The heavy rain which poured right from the start didn’t bother Maccabi as the wet surface was an advantage for Maccabi’s players. Eleven minutes from the start Dor Peretz found Helio Varela inside the visitors’ area before the Cape Verde winger curled a right foot shot beyond the reach of Niv Antman to break the deadlock.

Several minutes later Issouf Sissokho floated a ball over Haifa’s defense into the path of Varela who almost scored his second his second but saw his volley clear the crossbar. Maccabi kept tormenting Haifa down the left as the combination of Varela abd Roy Revivo was too much for Tamir Arbel.

In the 25th minute Maccabi doubled their lead as Varela slipped the ball to Revivo whose cross found Dor Peretz. The Maccabi captain had his initial effort saved by Niv Antman but Osher Davida pounced on the rebound to slot in the second.

Maccabi kept pushing forward and right on the half hour mark got their third. Tyrese Asante charged down the right and squared to Saied Abu Farchi who flicked the ball home from close range.

Second Half

Lazetic made two changes at the restart as Sissokho who was booked midway through the first half was replaced by Itamar Noy while Elad Madmon came on for Abu Farchi. Four minutes after the restart Maccabi were awarded a penalty as Madmon was tripped inside the area. Ido Shahar stepped up sent Antman the wrong way and buried his penalty in the bottom corner to score Maccabi’s fourth.

In the 57th minute Madmon dispossessed a Haifa player deep inside Maccabi’s half before releasing Varela who burst forward and was denied by Antman. A minute later Peretz drilled a shot which flashed across the face of goal. A minute after the hour mark Maccabi scored their fifth as Shahar turned provider sending a pinpoint cross to Davida who nodded home his second on the night from the goalmouth. Lazetic reacted with a double substitution as Varela and Peretz bowed and were replaced by Kervin Andrade and Ilay Ben Simon.

Lazetic made his fifth and final substitution on 78 as Shahar came off to a standing ovation from the 7605 fans who also cheered for the introduction of Kristijan Belic.

“We are obviously disappointed. We received a red card and played an entire half like that. I think if you perform that way you deserve three points,” Asante said. “We are playing well, but at the end of the day you need to take all three points, and that didn’t happen today. We have to keep moving forward.”

On Maccabi’s recent form, the 23-year-old Dutch defender added: “When you play for Maccabi, you need to win every match. That is what we are trying to do. We are working hard, but sometimes we don’t get what we deserve.”

“At the moment, we are on the wrong side of the coin. We need to work hard and wait for things to turn in our favor,” he continued. “I believe 100% that we are capable of doing it.”

On his personal form this season, Asante concluded: “I am trying. In my first season I needed to adapt, to gain confidence and experience. This season I’m trying to give my best, like everyone in the team, and it’s going fairly well.”

Preview

Maccabi arrived at the Netanya stadium for the MD15 WINNER League match against local side Maccabi Netanya aiming to return to winning ways. With his side third in the table with 28 points, Zarko Lazetic will aim to steer Maccabi to victory which would narrow the seven point gap from top spot. But on the back of the recent poor form which saw his side win only one match in the last five league outings – a victory against in form Netanya is vital.

Lazetic made several changes from the side which was held to a 2-2 by Hapoel Petah Tikva last Monday as Tyrese Asante partnered Ali Camara as the two central defenders in front of goalkeeper Ofek Melika. Noam Ben Harush was named in the right-back role with Roy Revivo completing Maccabi’s defensive line at left-back.

Having recovered from the injury which sidelined him since the victory over Hapoel Haifa, Issouf Sissokho returned to the anchorman role. Ido Shahar, who set up a goal and scored the dramatic late equalizer against Hapoel Petah Tikva joined the Mali midfielder in Maccabi’s engine room. Dor Peretz led the team out with the captain’s armband as the 30-year-old was named at the top of the midfield trio. Sagiv Jehezkel who had two goals disallowed against Petah Tikva, started on one wing with Helio Varela on the opposite flank. Saied Abu Farchi will aim to put behind him the penalty miss as he led Maccabi’s attack.

On the bench Lazetic named goalkeeper Roi Mishpati, Heitor Dos Santos, Kervin Andrade, Elad Madmon, Ben Lederman, Itamar Noy, Itay Ben Hemo, Ilay Ben Simon and Osher Davida.

First Half

Maccabi began the match on the front foot with pressure on Netanya’s players pinging them in their own half. A Saied Abu Farchi free kick found the head of Sagiv Jehezkel who couldn’t guide his header on target. In the 8th minute Aziz Outtara’s rough tackle on Abu Farchi saw the Netanya defender booked by referee Aviv Klein. In the 15th minute the deadlock was broken as a solo Helio Varela run from the halfway line took the Cape Verde winger past four Netanya players before squaring to Dor Peretz whonsweot the ball home. Three minutes later the hosts were back on level terms at the end of a lethal counter attack. Jehezkel lost possession on the edge of the Netanya penalty area before Rotem Keller charged down the left and cut the ball back for Oz Bilu who side footed home.

The end to end action continued as Noam Ben Harush went into the book for stopping a Netanya counter attack on the half hour mark. Ali Camara was also cautioned by Klein four minutes later for bringing down Bilu deep inside Maccabi’s half. Peretz had the ball in the back of the net on 39 after receiving a through ball from Jehezkel and clipping it past Omer Nir’on. But Maccabi’s celebrations were shortlived as Jehezkel was initially offside when Ben Harush’s pinpoint pass found him behind Netanya’s line of defense. On the brink of halftime Maccabi were reduced to 10 men as Camara was sent off for two bookable offences pulling Matheus Davo who raced clear through.

Second Half

Lazetic shuffled his side after the interval as Ido Shahar made way for Heitor dos Santos at the restart. Roy Revivo moved back to play alongside Tyrese Asante and dos Santos as three central defenders, Abu Farchi and Varela were the two wing-backs on the right and left respectively while Ben Harush pushed into the midfield. Right on the hour mark Melika clawed the ball from under the crossbar to deny Bilu. A minute later Lazetic made his second substitution as Osher Davida came on for Jehezkel with Varela pushing to role of the lonely striker.

Lazetic added a fresh pair of legs into a tired midfield as Ben Harush who worked tirelessly came off on 74 and was replaced by Itamar Noy. Lazetic made his final change on the night as Elad Madmon came on for the closing stages replacing Varela in injury time.

Maccabi continue the WINNER League campaign as Zarko Lazetic’s side face sixth place Maccabi Netanya on MD15.

Maccabi completed their preparations last night with a final practice session at the Kiryat Shalom training complex. Maccabi will aim to get back on the winning track after the 2–2 draw against Hapoel Petah Tikva in the previous round, and will meet an opponent they beat 4-0 earlier this season but has since climbed up the table with 22 points.

Following Hapoel Be’ersheva’s 3–0 defeat to Ironi Tiberias last night, Maccabi know that a victory in Netanya would reduce the gap at the top to four points. Yesterday, Lazetic spoke at the Press Conference and rovided an update, on the fitness of midfielders Kristijan Belic and Issouf Sissokho: “He (Belic) has trained in recent days, as has Sissokho. They are not in perfect condition, but they will be part of the squad.”

On Netanya, Lazetic added: “Netanya are very good in transition, very direct with the ball, especially through midfield. They get into the box with a lot of players and we need to be ready. A lot depends on us, we are Maccabi, even if people think we are not doing well. We will show our character and quality, I’m sure. We need to focus more on ourselves, not the table or the opponent, but on fixing what we need internally, arriving with good energy and belief”.

Despite his young age, Roy Revivo, is one of the most experienced players in Maccani’s squad. Revivo (22) who played 104 matches for Maccabi in all competitions, also represented his country on 51 occasions, featuring 18 times for the national team and 33 more matches at U23, U21 and U19 levels.

Revivo, who won 2 league titles at Maccabi acknowledged the recent difficult spell the team is currently undergoing, winning one match in the last five league matches: “We are on a bad streak and want to get back to winning ways, and enter a winning streak. We want to get out of this period and return to winning as we are used to. On a personal level, the situation frustrates me, as I don’t like not winning. It’s felt by all of us. We want to get out of it, and I’m confident it will happen.”

Revivo’ whose side dropped to third in the table, seven points adrift of first place, added: “We really miss the fans. In the two years I have been with the senior side and we won the championship, the fans have meant a great deal. They push us in every match, it’s the atmosphere and the energy, no matter where we play. We miss them and are confident it will work itself out.”

On his perspective of the current situation, Revivo said: “I like to understand things personally. To learn how to cope with them, that’s the mark of a great player: understanding what’s happening in a situation and knowing how to make the best of it.”

Ahead of Sunday’s opponents Netanya, who were beaten by Maccabi 4-0 earlier this season but has since climbed to sixth place, winning seven matches and drawing another, Revivo added: “Netanya is a very good team. There coach Yossi Abuksis is a good coach. The staff has prepared us in the best possible way, and we’re ready.”

On Maccabi’s position in the table in view of the title race, Revivo concluded: “It is always on our minds. We always want to be in first place. There are still plenty of games left.”

When asked whether he receives any tips from his father Haim, who scored 15 goals for Israel in 67 international appearances between 1990-2003 and has played for Celta Vigo, Fenerbahce and Galatasaray, Roy revealed: “We don’t talk about it too much. I just prefer to be myself. I like to deal with things on my own and work hard.”