Category: News

MACCABI BEATS HAIFA 3-1

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Preview

Three days after beating Maccabi Netanya 2-1 in a radius match, Maccabi returned to Sammy Ofer stadium for the match against runaway leaders Maccabi Haifa. Maccabi’s coach Mladen Krstajic whose side are third with 62 points, four adrift of second place Hapoel Be’ersheva, made five changes from the team that beat Netanya on Saturday.

Idan Nachmias stepped-in for the injured Josue Sa as the second central defender alongside Enric Saborit with Andre Geraldes and Matan Baltaxa completing the back-four at right and left back respectively. With Dan Glazer serving his one-match touchline ban, Eden Shamir returned to the heart of midfield to face the side he scored a wonder goal against during the 3-2 defeat earlier this season. Eyal Golasa as a stand-in captain led the team out with Gabi Kanichowsky completing the midfield trio.

Eylon Almog’s performance against Netanya saw him keep his place on the wing with Brandley Kuwas on the opposite flank. Stipe Perica lead the line in a bid to add to his 13 league goals while Djordje Jovanovic was named by Krstajic amongst the substitutes on the bench together with Daniel Tenenbaum, Matan Hozez, Osama Khalaila, Avi Rikan, Ofir Davidzada, Shahar Piven, Orel Baye, and Oscar Gloukh.

First Half

The match began at frantic pace as the rivalry between the two clubs was evident on the pitch right from the off. Haifa came close to draw first blood as referee Idan Leiba ignored a clear foul on Matan Baltaxa in the 8th minute and allowed Haifa to go on a counter attack. Din David charged forward and with only Daniel Peretz to beat the Haifa striker was stopped by the advancing keeper. In the 12th minute at the opposite end, Maccabi came close as an Andre Geraldes cross from the right found Gabi Kanichowsky unmarked at the far post but the diminutive midfielder sent a left foot volley wide of the post. Haifa’s captain, Neta Lavie, was booked by Leiba in the 15th minute after a foul on his Maccabi counterpart Eyal Golasa. Two minutes later David had another chance as he ran through the middle but his effort struck the side netting.

Haifa had the ball in the back of the net on 22 but the goal was disallowed for offside. A minute later the deadlock was finally broken as Eylon Almog skipped past Bogdan Planjic down the left flank before sending a pinpoint cross towards Stipe Perica. The tall Croatian striker who was left unmarked in the middle of the penalty box, headed home to beat Roei Mashpati and give Maccabi a 1-0 lead.

David almost equalised in the 26th minute as Dolev Haziza ghosted beyond Maccabi’s defence and turned a cross that was headed towards goal. But Peretz pulled a stunning reflex save to keep out the close range header before being saved by the crossbar a minute later following Haziza’s powerful strike.

In the 44th minute, Idan Nachmias was cautioned by Leiba for a foul on Omer Atzili before the resulting free kick was cleared and the first half ended.

Second Half

While Krstajic made no changes after the interval, his Haifa counterpart, Barak Bachar, shuffled his side as he introduced Mickael Alphonse for Lavie at the restart. In the 50th minute Maccabi celebrated a second goal as Perica slotted home a Kanichowsky square ball, but the celebrations were short-lived as VAR decided to rule the goal out for an alleged foul in the build-up move.

Two minutes after the hour mark Haifa were back on level terms as Peretz saved with his feet from Mahmoud Jabber. With the defence struggling to clear the danger, Tjaronn Cherry found the bottom corner with a low drive from the edge of the area to level the score. Krstajic reacted with a double substitution as Oscar Gloukh replaced Almog while Djordje Jovanovic came-in for Perica.

Krstajic made another change as Avi Rikan replaced the tired Shamir in the 74th minute. Two minutes later Rikan forced Mashpati to stretch himself and save before Jovanovic won a corner which was cleared.

In the 83rd minute Maccabi were awarded a penalty thanks to the intervention of VAR after Alphonse brought down Saborit inside the area. Jovanovic stepped up and successfully blasted the spot kick past Mashpati to restore Maccabi’s lead to make it 2-1. Krstajic made another double change on 88 as Shahar Piven came in for Kanichowsky while Orel Baye was handed his senior league debut replacing Kuwas.

Inside injury time, Baye made his mark on the game as his pressure on Haifa’s Ali Mohamed won Maccabi the ball on the halfway line. All three substitutes combined as Gloukh ended the move of his fellow youth teammate by firing in Rikan’s square ball to score Maccabi’s third and his third league goal of the season.

Be’ersheva’s 2-1 defeat to Hapoel Tel Aviv saw Haifa celebrate the league title despite being beaten humiliated on home soil. Maccabi on the other hand, moved within a point from Be’ersheva less than a week before both teams meet at Bloomfield.     

Final preparations: Maccabi returns to Sammy Ofer

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Three days after beating Maccabi Netanya in Saturday’s league match which was relocated to Haifa due to a radius ban, Maccabi Tel Aviv returns to the Sammy Ofer stadium this evening. This time round Maccabi will be the visiting team as they are hosted by Maccabi Haifa for the 34th league round.

When and where: Tuesday May 10th at 20:30, Sammy Ofer stadium.

Referee: Idan Leiba, VAR: Eitan Shmuelevic and Idan Yarkoni

Temperature: 17c (clear)

League table:

Maccabi are currently ranked 3rd with 62 points, four points adrift of second place Hapoel Be’ersheva (66) while Maccabi Haifa lead the table with 72 points. The runaway leaders are aware of the fact that a victory against Maccabi together with Be’ersheva dropping points in the corresponding match away to Hapoel Tel Aviv will secure them a second championship in succession.

Squads:

Maccabi will be forced to manage without Dan Glazer who will serve a one-match suspension due to yellow cards. Haifa will miss Glazer’s midfield opposite number, Mohamad Abu Fani, who was sent off in Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Be’ersheva. Maccabi’s Portuguese central defender, Josue Sa, who was stretchered off during the 2-1 victory over Netanya is in doubt, as is Haifa’s American born custodian Josh Cohen with a shoulder injury.

What would have been a sell-out 30,000 fans, will now see a maximum capacity of 22,000 after the IFA‘s Disciplinary Court punished Haifa with the closure of their North stand for their fans’ misconduct.

This season so far:

So far this season both teams met in the league 3 times with Maccabi winning the first match in the regular season 2-1 at Bloomfield before suffering a 3-2 defeat in the corresponding fixture at Sammy Ofer. The first match of the Playoff which Maccabi hosted at Bloomfield ended in a dramatic 1-1 draw.

Legends Club: Yaron Oz

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Yaron Oz was born on May 10, 1952 and was one of Maccabi’s leading players in the 1970’s which was considered one of the most fruitful periods of the club’s history. The midfielder was a leader on the pitch and was an influential player on both ends of the pitch.

Oz made his debut at the age of 18 as a substitute in a 2:1 league win over Maccabi Netanya at the start of the 1970/71 season. The midfielder was also part of capturing the State Cup in 1969/70 as the latter stages were pushed off until 1970/71. Oz was also part of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Asian Cup victory and came on as a substitute against Punjab Police from India in the group stages abs lifted the Cup with his teammates at the end of the tournament.

Having played a decade with the club, Oz’s first goal was in a 1:1 Derby draw against Hapoel Tel Aviv in October 1972. In total, Oz scored 11 goals across all competitions for the club.

Goals may not have been Oz’s strength but his abilities in the midfield were recognized by the Israel National Team. Head Coach Edmond Schmilovich called up Oz in February 173 and made his first appearance with the Blue & White in a 1:1 draw against Argentina. In total, Oz made 26 appearances for Israel, scored two goals and also took part in the 1976 Olympic Games and scored in a 2:2 draw versus Mexico.

At the end of the 1979/80 season and after ten years with Maccabi, Oz move to Maccabi Jaffa. All in all, the midfielder made 303 appearances for the Yellow & Blue.

Titles
Championships: 1971/72, 1976/77, 1978/79
State Cups: 1969/70, 1976/77
Asian Cup: 1970/71

Kanichowsky: “We would like to finish the season on a high”

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As the Haifaites could secure the league title, Gabi Kanichowsky, said: “The feeling amongst the players and in the dressing room is just like in every game as we don’t care about the opponents and their targets. We would like to give a 100% in every game and finish the season on a high note. For us, a match against Maccabi Haifa is a match with honour at stake and we would like to win every game regardless who we face”.

On the defeat at Sammy Ofer when both teams faced each other in the regular season, the 24-year-old said: “We cone to play our football regardless of the opponent or the stadium and would like to make amends for that game. We will have to come smarter this time”.

Almog: “My job is to work hard”

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The 23-year-old forward admitted after the game: “I am feeling good after tonight’s match. It is true that I didn’t play too much this season but my job is to work hard and be prepared for the moment I will be called into action. I didn’t let my head drop and worked extra hard in training. The coach gave me an opportunity to prove myself and I think today I took it. Every chance I was given this season I tried to do my best. The coach gave me a chance in the beginning, I showed some good form but I got injured against Maccabi Haifa and struggled to get back into the team after that. Today I played for 90 minutes and I am happy that I showed I could play and help the team”

Golasa: “We would like to win every game until the end of the season”

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The 30-year-old midfielder who helped Maccabi record their first victory of the season over Maccabi Netanya, said at the end of the game: “We would like to win in every game. We didn’t enjoy the best start to the Playoffs, as a Maccabi player I can clearly say that we want to win every game until the end of the season and hope we will do so”.

On the victory over Netanya that beat both Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Be’ersheva in recent weeks, Golasa added: “Netanya are an excellent side as we expected a tough match. The energies in the second half made the difference – we were more energetic and I am delighted we ultimately won”.

MACCABI BEATS NETANYA 2-1

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Preview

Maccabi Tel Aviv arrived at Sammy Ofer ahead of the league match against Maccabi Netanya which was relocated to Haifa due to a radius ban the club suffered for the fans misconduct.

Mladen Krstajic whose side is four points adrift of second place Hapoel Be’ersheva, made several changes from the team that suffered a late injury time defeat at Sakhnin last week. Ofir Davidzada returned to the left side of defence, with Enric Saborit partnering Josue Sa as the two central defenders. Andre Geraldes at right-back completed the back-four assigned to protect goalkeeper Daniel Peretz.

Dan Glazer led the team out with the captain’s armband from the midfield anchor-man role, before he serves a one-match touchline ban in Tuesday’s match against Maccabi Haifa. Eyal Golasa kept his place in midfield and was joined by Avi Rikan, who missed out the match in Sakhnin due to an ankle injury. Eylon Almog was handed a rare start at the top of midfield and right behind striking duo Djordje Jovanivic and Stipe Perica who both led the line.

With several players side-lined with injuries, Krstajic named young Orel Baye amongst the substitutes as the 18-year-old winger who made his senior debut in a Cup tie against Maccabi Jaffa, waited for his chance to make his senior league debut. Daniel, Tenenbaum, Matan Baltaxa, Idan Nachmias, Gabi Kanichowsky, Brandley Kuwas, Eden Shamir, Shahar Piven and Oscar Gloukh completed the subs list on the bench waiting for their chance to make an impact.

First Half

With less only 6450 fans in the stadium, those in attendance tried creating an atmosphere resembling a home match. It took Maccabi three minutes to create a chance which should have ended with a goal as Eylon Almog was sent into the area down the left flank. Almog then spotted Avi Rikan unmarked in the middle of the penalty area only for the veteran midfielder to be denied by Netanya’s keeper Dani Amos who charged off his line and saved with his feet. Zlatan Sehovic became the first player to be booked by referee Snir Levy following a rough tackle on Andre Geraldes in the eighth minute.

Patrick Tumasi tested Daniel Peretz with a right foot curled shot from outside the area in the 20th minute which was caught by Maccabi’s keeper. Three minutes after the half hour mark, play was stopped for several minutes as Dan Glazer required treatment for a head injury following a collision with Netanya’s striker Igor Zlatanovic.

When play was resumed, Tumasi teed-up Eden Kartzev on the edge of Peretz’s area before the former Maccabi midfielder blasted a shot which narrowly cleared the crossbar. Two minutes later, Peretz was at full stretch to push out Parfait Guigon’s powerful low drive. Maccabi came close at the opposite end as Rikan was handed another glorious chance to score but this time Plamen Galabov cleared with his head before the ball could reach the target. Tumasi blasted another powerful shot that caught Pertez by surprise but once again just cleared the crossbar.

Second Half

Krstajic shuffled his front line at the restart as Almog moved to the wing instead of Djordje Jovanovic while Stipe Perica dropped further back. In the 52nd minute a long accurate Peretz ball out of defence found Almog down the left flank before his cut-back reached Perica whose shot was blocked by Galabov’s hand. Levy awarded a penalty and Perica stepped up to take the spot-kick  which he calmly slotted past Amos to give Maccabi the lead.

But Netanya, that were unbeaten by Maccabi all season, restored parity within two minutes as Zlatanovic broke through the middle and fired in the equaliser. Krstajic was forced to make his first change in the 66th as Idan Nachmias replaced Josue Sa who was stretchered off while Matan Baltaxa came in for Ofir Davidzada at left back.

Krstajic made another double change on 71 as Gabi Kanichowsky came in for Rikan with Perica replaced by Brandley Kuwas. In the 79th minute Maccabi should have taken the lead after Jovanovic released Kuwas who only had Amos to beat but somehow managed to miscue his shot wide of the target. Oscar Gloukh replaced Glazer immediately after, as Krstajic made his fifth and final change in the 81st minute.

The young midfielder could have made his mark on the game three minutes later as Netanya’s defence cleared a corner which fell to his feet, but the shot went high and wide.

In the 87th minute however, Gloukh made no mistake as he scored his second senior goal to end a perfect counter attack. Kuwas charged down the right flank before releasing Geraldes whose square ball reached Gloukh in the middle of the box. Gloukh controlled the ball with one touch and volleyed home past Amos to score Maccabi’s second and make it 2-1.