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.”
