Matchday 22 of the Israel Youth Premier League featured Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv against Maccabi Haifa at Ramle Stadium. The young Yellow & Blue entered the contest in 2nd place with 10 wins in their last 13 fans while the Greens sat in 4th place.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI included Daniel Peretz in goal, Noam Cohen, Alon Shtrozberg, Fadi Najar, Yoav Hofmayster, Tamir Glazer, Tomer Altman (C), Prince Thomas, Mufleh Shalata, Eylon Almog, William Agada.

First Half
Maccabi had the first chance of the match in the 5’ when Almog took the ball in the center of the pitch and made his way towards the box, but his long distance opportunity hit a defender. But the ball rebounded back to Almog but his shot was saved by Sherif Kioff and sent out for a corner. A minute later, Tzarfati’s side again had a chance at the goal when Thomas sent the ball to Agada who smashed the ball out.

In the 8’ central defender Fadi Najar tried his luck from outside the box with a hard shot, but the attempt just grazed the ball. Two minutes later Altman went across the midfield and sent a through ball to Almog, but his attempt his shot went off the post. In the 12’ the Greens has their opening chance when striker Gal Katabi sent the ball towards the target but Peretz was in place to send the balk out for a corner. As the match hit the 17’ Maccabi took the lead when Shtrozberg sent a through ball to the left wing right to an awaiting Cohen who loved to the top of the box and made a pinpoint perfect pass to Thomas who found the back of the goal for a 1:0 advantage.

As the match hit the 20’ the young Yellow & Blue almost doubled their output but Agada’s chance just whistled by the post. Fifteen minutes later the Yellow & Blue had another opportunity when Cohen sent a through ball to Shalata on the left wing who went by a couple of defenders and Agada’s shot went off a defender to end the threat. In the 40’ Haifa central defender Giorgi Drasila took a long shot but Peretz was in place to make the save as Maccabi took a 1:0 lead into the break.

Second Half
Almog began the Half well as Almog received a terrific ball just at the top of the box but his attempt was saved by Kioff. In the 63’ Guy Dahan who came on as a substitute for the Greens took a chance from far out but the ball went out while ten minutes later Haifa almost drew even when Mohamed Caanan’s chance was saved by Peretz but the rebound went to Maor Levi who sent the ball into the Yellow & Blue defense. The Greens again threatened the Maccabi goal in the 77’ when Timothy crossed the ball from the right but Dahan’s attempt just missed the post. Two minutes later Agada’s shot went out.

Haifa drew even when the referees called a penalty as they determined that the Maccabi defense pulled the striker down in the box which Yam Cohen converted to make the score 1:1. In the 88’ Agada received p the ball at the top of the box, turned and unleashed a vicious shot but it hit the outside netting of the goal while two minutes later Yam Cohen again headed the ball out as the contest ended in a 1:1 draw.

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv – Maccabi “Shmuel” Haifa, 12:00 Ramle Stadium (U19)
After a break last week, the Under-19 squad is back in action as they host Maccabi Haifa on Matchday 22 of the Israel Youth Premier League. Guy Tzarfati’s side are in 2nd place and are just one point off top of the table Hapoel Raanana while the Greens are in 4th place just two points away from the Yellow & Blue.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Bnei Sakhnin, 11:00 Kiryat Shalom 1 (U17)
After last week’s 3:0 win over Beitar Jerusalem the Under-17 club will host Bnei Sakhnin on Matchday 22. The young Yellow & Blue are in first place with a 15 point lead as the visitor’s are in 13th spot with 5 league wins this season.

Hapoel “Yotam” Rishon Le’Zion – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 8:30 Rishon Le’Zion Superland 2 North (U16)
The Under-16 squad will travel to Rishon Le’Zion on Matchday 23. Maccabi “Oded” are currently in 5th place and are 8 points off the top of the table while the Orange are in 9th place.

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv – Ironi Kiryat Gat, 09:30 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (U15 South)
After last week’s terrific State Cup win over Maccabi Haifa to advance to the semifinals of the competition, the Under-15 South side will host Kiryat Gat as they will look to pick up the win. The young Yellow & Blue are in 2nd place, 4 points away from first place with a match in hand as Kiryat Gat are in 12 place with 4 league wins.

Maccabi “Max” Haifa – Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv, 14:15 Haifa Kesef Lower (U15 North)
The Under-15 North squad also move on to the State Cup Semifinal last week and will now head north for a date with the Carmel Greens on Matchday 22. Maccabi “Ilan” are in 3rd place while the Greens are in first place 5 points ahead of the Yellow & Blue.

Hapoel “Nisonov” Tel Aviv 2:2 Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv
The Club’s Under-19 side drew with Hapoel Tel Aviv in the Derby on Matchday. Tomer Altman and Eylon Almog scored for the Yellow & Blue as they took home one point and fell to 2nd place, just one point off the top of the table. Next Matchday Guy Tzarfati’s team will host Maccabi Haifa. For the Full Match Report, CLICK HERE.

SC Ashdod 1:2 Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv
After an important midweek win over Bnei Yehuda, Eliezer Ben Aharon’s defeated Ashdod away on Matchday 21 as they sit in first place, 12 points ahead of the 2nd place side. Bar Cohen and Rave Assayag scored for Maccabi. Ben Aharon summed up the victory: “Every match at Ashdod is challenging for any team and age group. Ashdod took the lead in the 14’ due to a defensive error, but our players didn’t get down as a result of the goal and pushed forward with quality chances which resulted in 2 goals. We made some changes in our attack in the second half in order to kill the game but we failed to score. However, we kept the lead as we fought and battled knowing that we needed the victory in order to win the title. Our goal as a team is to continue to play well and that creates even more motivation on their part. The players have a lot of determination and we saw that today.”

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv 11:0 Beitar Ironi Maale Adumim “Tzav Pius”
The Under-16 club hosted Maale Adumim on Matchday 21 and recorded 11 goals and a clean sheet. Yali Lazar, Yishay Bozorgi and Tal Turgeman all scored hat tricks while Niv Berkovich added a brace in the win. Head Coach Raymond Atteveld talked about the match: “I’m very happy with the result and the way we pressured the opponent from the first moment. We made sure that they wouldn’t think that they could take a point and control the ball. It’s usually difficult to play these types of games and continue to score goals. I’m happy that the players did do that and they deserve to be complimented. It’s good to see that even when we score 11 goals we continued to play at the same pace.”

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv 1:2 Hapoel “Rami” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 South team fell to the Reds in the Derby on Matchday 20 as Oskar Glok scored the lone goal for the Yellow & Blue. Head Coach Ori David spoke about the match: “We lost in a game that could have resulted in a big win for us. We had many good chances close to the goal after we were ahead 1:0 and we controlled the contest but two mistakes due to exhaustion cost us 2 unnecessary goals. They played well, but now we have to focus on the Cup match against Maccabi Haifa.”

Maccabi Petah Tikva 0:0 Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv
After an important midweek win, 2:1 over Netanya, the Under-15 North squad played Petah Tikva to a goalless draw. Asaf Heber, the Head Coach summed up the match: This is the 4th time we met Maccabi Petah Tikva this season and they are a terrific team. As the season continued we can see the differences in the level of the matches themselves and the football that’s being played. I’m proud of the football we played and how we played as we tried to take advantage of the opponent’s weak points. If we would have been a bit more clinical near the goal we could have taken home the win, but now we have to look ahead to the State Cup quarterfinals.”

Matchday 21 of the Israel Youth Premier League Ligat Ha’Al featured a Tel Aviv Derby between Maccabi and Hapoel as the young Yellow & Blue began the day in 1st place with 10 wins in 12 of their last matches while the Reds came into the contest in 10th place.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI included keeper Daniel Peretz, Amit Glazer, Alon Shtrozberg, Fadi Najar, Yoav Hofmayster, Tamir Glazer, Tomer Altman, Eylon Almog, Mufleh Shalata, Eyal Hen and William Agada.

First Half
In the 3’ the Reds had the first opportunity of the contest when a cross came in from the right to Osher Davida, but Peretz made the save. Four minutes later, it was Maccabi’s turn to threaten when Amit Glazer sent a through ball to Shalata but his chance was saved by the Hapoel keeper.

In the 9’ Maccabi again looked to take the lead when Shalata crossed the ball to Almog but his header met the outside netting of the goal, while Shalata again sent a pass to Agada but his header went by the post and out. Almog’s attempt then went by the post as the Yellow & Blue put all kinds of pressure on the Reds early on.

As the match hit the 35’ Agada took a cross in the box but his shot was saved by the Reds keeper Omer Tal. Finally in the 42’ Maccabi found the back of the goal as Najar began the play, passed the ball to Almog who sent it to Altman as the captain used his right foot to slam it home for a 1:0 lead. Two minutes later Hapoel drew even as a cross from the left found Davida and he headed it behind Peretz as the half ended all knotted up at 1:1.

Second Half
Hapoel came out looking to take the lead early on in the second half as Benny Terdovsky’s 47’ chance hit the post, but 6 minutes later the Reds found the back of the goal as Ali Alavra sent a cross into the box that Adji Heford headed in for the one goal advantage. In the 55’ Altman’s free kick created confusion in the box but the Hapoel defense cleared the ball to safety.

Maccabi found the equalizer in the 64’ on a gorgeous set play as Almog curled the ball into the far corner and into the goal. The Yellow & Blue pressed for a go ahead marker and four minutes later they almost found it via Tamir Glazer as the midfielder hit the bar. In the 70’ Prince Thomas who had come on as a substitute sent the ball towards from the box, but the keeper made the save.

Seven minutes later, the Reds had a dangerous chance, but the ball was cleared by the Yellow & Blue defense and in the 90’ Hapoel almost found the winner via a through ball to Yonatan Levi but his attempt went out for a corner as the contest ended in a 2:2 draw.

Just like the best players in the world: The Brand New Youth Department Project

Hapoel “Nisanov” Tel Aviv – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, 12:00 Wolfs (U19)
Maccabi “Shachar” currently sits in 1st place and will meet Hapoel in the Tel Aviv Derby on Matchday 21 of the Israel Youth Premier League. The Young Yellow & Blue have won 10 our of their last 12 league contests while their rivals are in 10th place with 3 straight losses.

SC Ashdod Zilber – Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, 9:30 Ashdod College 1 (U17)
After a midweek 2:1 win over Bnei Yehuda, Eliezer Ben Aharon’s squad will get back to action with a tricky away match at Ashdod who are in 9th place on the table and are winless in their last 4 matches. The Yellow & Blue are in 1st place with an 11 point gap on the 2nd place side and a game in hand.

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv – Beitar Ironi Maale Adumim “Tzav Pius”, Sunday March 4, 15:30 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (U16)
The Under-16 side drew 3:3 midweek against Maccabi Haifa and will look to get back onto the winning track on Matchday 21 when they host Maale Adumim. The visitors currently find themselves in last place with just 4 points while the young Yellow & Blue are in 5th.

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv – Hapoel “Rami” Tel Aviv, 10:30 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (U15 South)
The Under-15 South team won their midweek match against Nes Ziona by a 2:1 score and Ori David’s squad will now welcome Hapoel in a Tel Aviv Derby on Matchday 20. Maccabi is in 1st place and have scored 26 goals while giving up only 1 marker in their last 5 matches. Meanwhile, Hapoel enter the game in 5th place, 13 points away from Maccabi.

Maccabi “Partush” Petah Tikva – Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv, 8:45 Petah Tikva Synthetic (U15 North)
After a 2:1 midweek win over Netanya, the U15 North club will visit the 2nd place side who have won 4 out of their last 5 matches. The Young Yellow & Blue are in 3rd, 5 points away form the host’s.

The Club’s Under-19 side is in the midst of the 2017/18 campaign as Guy Tzarfati’s team is currently in 1st place thanks to a better goal differential over Maccabi Netanya. Just ahead of the big Derby match against Hapoel Tel Aviv this Saturday, we spoke to 4 players who each play a different position on the pitch as they give us a different perspective about the season and how they have advanced professionally throughout the campaign.

Meet the players:

Goalkeeper – Daniel Peretz

The young keeper is only 17.5 years old and is the first choice shot stopper with 20 matches under his belt. He is in his 10th season at Maccabi and has also trained with the first team while also participating in their preseason training camp. His role model is Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Central Defender – Fadi Najar
Najar is 19.5 years old and has made 18 appearances for the Under-19 team, having scored one goal this season against Hapoel Tel Aviv. The young central defender made his First Team debut in a Toto Cup victory over Hapoel Raanana. This is his second season with Maccabi and was chosen as the Under-19 club’s player of the season last campaign.

Midfielder – Tomer Altman
Altman (20) plays the central midfielder position and is in his 6th season with the club. With 15 matches under his belt this campaign, he has scored 2 goals both coming in Derbies; one against Hapoel Tel Aviv and the other versus Bnei Yehuda. Altman made his debut with the First Team against Bnei MMBE in the State Cup competition.

Striker – Eylon Almog

Almog, 19 years old, is the leading scorer for the Under-19 side with 10 goals in 20 matches across all competitions. The young striker also has made two appearances for the First Team in the Cup tournament. This is Almog’s 7th season with Maccabi and he dreams of playing for the First Team in the years to come.

We asked the players about their season to date:
Daniel Peretz, who also plays for the National Team began the discussion: “We are a very young team and many of us are in our first season with the Under-19 side and that played a factor at the beginning of our season. We weren’t steady enough at the start, but we continued to work hard in our training sessions and we were able to meet the demand that were expected of us. Over the last while we have been able to continue to meld together as a team from a professional standpoint and we are continuing to improve from game to game.”

Fadi Najar has been helping Peretz out by anchoring the defense. The central defender began the season a bit later than his teammates due to an injury: “We didn’t begin the season the best way possible and it took us time to come together as a team, but we have now hit good momentum and we have been able to perform well on the pitch.”

The player who connects the defensive line with the attack is Tomer Altman, who also serves as the captain: “We have done nicely and are now in the race for the title.” The club’s striker who has also played a number of attacking positions this season added: “We knew that we were in a building process with a new squad and everything was new for us. Slowly but surely we were able to put together a streak of wins and we are in a good spot now. We are just looking at the season match by match and we will give it our all right until the end of the campaign.”

About their personal and club goals:
The club’s keeper praised the professional staff for helping the squad improve and advance throughout the season as well as meeting their own personal goals: “Our goal as a club is to first off play quality, dominating football and that every player can continue to improve their skills before reaching the First Team age. From a personal standpoint my goal is to help the team give up as few goals as possible.”

Najar also spoke about his goals as to continuing to develop professionally: “I’d be happy if we can translate our development into a championship title at the end of the season.” Altman had to deal with a broken foot at the start of the campaign and was off of the pitch for a lengthy amount of time, but worked hard to return: “There’s no question that now is the time to give a big push towards the end of the season and to do as much as possible to help the team take the title.” The sides’s striker, Almog discussed how he is working on improving his game for an opportunity to advance to the club’s First Team: “We’re hungry to succeed as much as possible with the hope to continue to improve and win the championship.”

To conclude we asked them about coming together as a team:
Peretz said: “We are a side that gets along very well and it’s a lot of fun to play together. We have a good time and that helps keep the dressing room upbeat. We spend a lot of time together away from the pitch and the training sessions. I’m very proud to be part of this club.” Najar added: “We always try to keep a good team atmosphere off of the pitch and the whole club tries to go out together to a restaurant at least once every two weeks. Altman also chimed in: “This season we have a very good group of guys and we all look out for one another.” Almog concluded: “We have gotten along well right from the outset of the season and I think you can see that as well on the field of play.”

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 1:0 Bnei Sakhnin
The Under-19 squad returned home and not only picked up a 1:0 win thanks to a goal by Eyal Hen but also moved into first place in the Israel Youth Premier League Ligat Ha’Al. Guy Tzarfati’s side took advantage of a Netanya draw to leap frog them on the table. For the Full Match Report Click Here.

Hapoel “Tzachi Ben Porat” Tel Aviv 1:1 Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv
The Under-17 team drew with Hapoel in a “Match of the season” Derby on Matchday 19 as each side earned a point which kept the gap between the two clubs at 9 points. Gil Ben Shalosh scored for the young Yellow & Blue. Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon summed up the contest: “The goal we scored was a direct result of a play that we worked on in the training session the day before the match. They say that football is played for the full 90 minutes and today we saw that this was certainly correct. We learned that if you only play one half you have to convert your chances. We had a good first half except when it came to finishing off our plays and the second half Hapoel were better than we were. The players were a bit tired due to the fact that 6 were with the National team and played a pair of friendlies during the week. We’re proud of the players as to how they’ve invested in themselves, their desire and quality they bring to each and every match. The next chapter will be written this coming Wednesday and we will come into the game wanting to continue to improve and write a better chapter in the next match than the last one.”

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv 2:0 Maccabi “Moshe Dayan” Petah Tikva
The Under-16 club defeated Maccabi Petah Tikva on Matchday 20 and closed to gap to first place to just 6 points. Roy Maayan and Yali Lazar scored for the young Yellow & Blue. Head Coach Raymond Atteveld spoke about the victory: “The match went according to plan from our training sessions as we worked on specifics for this contest and it went well. We spoke about this after the win that they proved that hard work during practice pays off in the games. We were very tough on defense and that was very important for a football club. The match was very tactical and the players did fantastic work and helped each other on the pitch. We could have scored more goals but we missed a number of times from one on one situations in front of the goal while on the other hand we were put into many dangerous situations on the defensive end. I’m very happy about our results and over the last few weeks we played against some tough opponents while this Wednesday we face Maccabi Haifa so we can’t celebrate too much. We congratulated the players after the match and they know that they have to continue on in a few days.”

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv 5:0 Bnei Yehuda Grundman
After a midweek 2:0 win over Ashdod, Ori David’s Under-15 South side picked up a home win in style against Bnei Yehuda. The Yellow & Blue stayed in first place thanks to goals by Oskar Glok with a brace, Liel Shota, Elad Kaplan and Ohad Mizrahi. The Head Coach talked about the victory: “This was a fantastic win over Bnei Yehuda and we played well with a good pace of play. We had many opportunities close to the goal and we scored 5 beautiful markers.”

Beitar Ramat Gan 3:3 Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 North squad split the points with Ramat Gan in a match that featured plenty of goals and currently sit in 4th place, 5 points off the top of the table. Ben Linker and Ido Karbes scored for the Yellow & Blue. Head Coach Asaf Heber summed up the draw: “This was a match with many ups and downs, deficits, leads and we ended up giving up the lead at the end of the match. We will continue to work hard and be a little bit less naive in order to record better results.”

Matchday 20 of the Israel Youth Premier League Ligat Ha’Al featured Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv hosting Bnei Sakhnin. The young Yellow & Blue began the day in second place just 2 points off the top of the table with 9 wins in 11 matches while the visiting Bnei Sakhnin were in 12th place. Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s attack included Mufleh Shalata, Eyal Hen and William Agada.

The Starting XI featured Daniel Peretz in goal, Amit Glazer, Alon Shtrozberg, Fadi Najar, Yoav Hofmayster, Tamir Glazer, Tomer Altman, Eylon Almog, Mufleh Shalata, Eyal Hen and William Agada.

First Half
In the 4’ the Yellow & Blue almost took the quick lead when Shalata crossed the ball from the right to Hen, but the keeper was able to make the save, while ten minutes later Sakhnin striker Osame Halayla’s attempt from the top of the box went out. A minute later, Altman’s chance in the box was again saved by the Sakhnin keeper Oddo Akevan.

In the 24’ Almog tried his luck from long distance but Akevan made the stop while a minute later, Almog’s chance went over the bar. Altman’s 29’ opportunity was saved by Akevan from 20 meters as the young Yellow & Blue came closer to scoring.

And score they would in the 38’ off a counter attack as Hen took a through ball from the left wing and put it into the far corner of the goal for a 1:0 Maccabi lead. Agada and Almog each had chances to add to the lead before the end of the half but Akevan came up big again as the Yellow & Blue took a 1:0 lead into the break.

Second Half
Maccabi “Shachar” continued to apply pressure and control the pace of the play. In the 63’ a terrific through ball made its way to Shalata, but his attempt was saved by Akevan, while ten minutes later Almog’s corner found Agada in the box but his header was stopped by the keeper.

In the 77’ Sakhnin looked to find the equalizer but the Maccabi defense took care of the threat. Six minutes later the Yellow & Blue almost doubled their lead as Altman sent a smart ball to Agada in the box but Akevan was again up to the task and sent the back our for a corner. Agada tried to put the ball over the keeper in the 90’ but his attempt missed the goal as Maccabi wrapped up a 1:0 win and moved into first place.