Preview
Maccabi arrived at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus for the Conference League Round of 16 first leg against Greek giants Olympiacos. Robbie Keane’s side that finished top of their group will aim to clinch a result in Athens to keep their dreams of securing qualification to the Quarter Final at the TSC Arena in Backa Topola next week.
Keane made a single change from the side that beat Maccabi Petah Tikva at the weekend as Enric Saborit replaced Matan Baltaxa to partner Idan Nachmias as the second central defender in front of goalkeeper Roi Mishpati. Ido Shahar who played as a makeshift right-back, kept his place with Roy Revivo completing the back-four on the opposite left flank. Joris van Overeem in the anchorman role was joined by Dor Peretz and Gabi Kanichowsky in Maccabi’s midfield engine room. Osher Davida also kept his place on the right wing with Felicio Milson on the opposite side supplying the width to Maccabi’s attack. Eran Zahavi led the line and the team out wearing the captain’s armband as the veteran marksman will aim to add to his impressive tally of 28 goals in all competitions so far this season.
On the bench Keane named Daniel Tenenbaum, Orlando Mosquera, Avishai Cohen, Dor Turgeman, Dan Biton, Yonatan Cohen, Eyal Golasa, Ofir Davidzada, Matan Baltaxa, Adir Cordoba, Kiko Bondoso, Eden Karzev.
First Half
Boosted by the support of their fans, the hosts began the match with pressure on Robbie Keane’s side right from the start as Maccabi struggled to break out of their own half in the first four minutes. Maccabi then began to get into their rhythm as Joris van Overeem, Dor Peretz and Gabi Kanichowsky started dominating the midfield. In fifth minute, Van Overeem switched sides to Felicio Milson who slid the ball towards the penalty area. A mix-up between Olympiacos’ defender Panagiotis Retsos and his keeper allowed Eran Zahavi to ghost through and send a left foot shot past Alexandros Paschalakis to give Maccabi an early lead.
Four minutes later the Keane’s side enjoyed a dream start as the majority of the 31,054 fans at Georgios Karaiskakis stadium were silenced while the visiting section were in a state of delirium following Maccabi’s second. Osher Davida broke down the left and picked Peretz whose powerful drive was initially parried by Paschalakis. Ido Shahar pounced on the loose ball, brought it down with one touch and blasted home from close range to double Maccabi’s lead. In the 13th minute however Olympiacos pulled a goal back as the Moroccan striker Ayoub El Kaabi was left unmarked at the far post to head in past Roi Mishpati and cut the deficit. The goal shifted the momentum in Olympiacos’ favor as the hosts dominated the play pushing Maccabi back into their penalty area. Kanichowsky was booked by referee Craig Pawson for a foul on Andre Horate near the center circle in the 20th minute.
Right on the half hour mark Maccabi restored their two-goal lead as Kanichowsky picked Milson who dribbled into the area and cut the ball back for Zahavi. The veteran number seven tapped-in Maccabi’s third to score his second on the night, 12th in Europe this season and 30th in all competitions. In the 35th minute Zahavi came close to complete a first half hattrick as his half volley from close range shaved the top of the crossbar. Shahar went into the referee’s book for pulling down Olympiacos’ Portuguese winger Daniel Podence as the diminutive makeshift full-back stopped a counter attack. On the stroke of halftime Davida had a chance to increase Maccabi’s lead as he broke through from the right. But the pacey winger wasted his chance as he cut inside from the corner of the area to send his effort high and wide.
Second Half
With no changes to either side after the interval, Maccabi began the second half where they left off as Keane’s charges looked dangerous going forward. Olympiacos enjoyed most of the possession as a misunderstanding in Maccabi’s defense allowed El Kaabi through. But Mishpati charged off his line to block the Moroccan striker from cutting the deficit on 51 as he kept Maccabi’s two goal lead in-tact. Keane made his first substitution in the 68th minute as Davida who worked tirelessly down the right was replaced by Dan Biton.
Horta tried his luck with a long-range effort on 72, but Misphati was ready on his line. Maccabi’s counter attack at the opposite end saw Biton leave the ball for Peretz whose powerful drive was saved by Paschalakis. Olympiacos struggled to clear the danger as Kanichowsky floated a cross into the box for Peretz to head in Maccabi’s fourth on the night, his seventh in Europe this season and 14th in all competitions. Keane made a double change as Zahavi and van Overeem bowed out and were replaced by Eden Karzev and Dor Turgeman in the 77th minute.
Keane made another double change in the 81st minute as Kanichowsky and Milson received a standing ovation from the 1500 Maccabi travelling fans as they were replaced by Ofir Davidzada and Eyal Golasa for the closing stages. Substitute Joao Carvalho came close in the 89th minute as his curling long range effort beat Mishpati but crashed against the post. The referee added five minutes as Olympiacos tried desperately to grab another goal, but Maccabi defended bravely with numbers as the full time whistle saw the Yellows celebrate one of the most impressive victories in the club’s history.
