The Club’s Under-19 team hosted an International Youth Tournament at Kiryat Shalom that included Bayer Leverkusen, Red Star Paris, Beitar Jerusalem, Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Rishon Le’Zion. Guy Tzarfati’s side was in first place at the end of the competition and were awarded the Championship Trophy. We’ve put together some of the young Yellow & Blue’s best goals over the course of the tournament.
Category: News
Patrick van Leeuwen summed up the U-19 tournament
The Maccabi Tel Aviv Performance Director, Patrick van Leeuwen looked back at the Academy’s First International Youth Tournament and summed up its success:
“Good organization is only half of the job and that is what we, the MTA Academy have done leaving us all with a very good feeling after three days of tournament football!”
Tournament winners:
“To the above we have to acknowledge the achievement of our U19 team who were the winners of our first International Youth Tournament.”
More about the young Yellow & Blue:
“The Maccabi “Shachar” Under-19 side grew match by match and delivered a stable performance. When you perform well as a team, then success will come your way.”
Performance on and off of the field of play:
“Personally, I enjoyed the performance of all of the teams and everybody showed their qualities during the tournament both on and off the field.”
A big thank you:
“Thank you all, from the employees of the Academy that organized the tournament to the teams and coaching staffs that came and believed in our organization.”
Final wishes:
“Good luck and enjoy the start or continuation of your league!”
Until next time…
Patrick van Leeuwen looked back at day 2 of the MTA Youth Tournament at Kiryat Shalom:
“It was a great and beautiful day for the tournament as the weather and field conditions were perfect for all of the teams.”
Fans in Israel and abroad:
“The spectators that attended the Tournament enjoyed good performances by the teams. The matches were also broadcasted through via the club’s YouTube channel which is a great service for fans from other cities and for the followers of Bayer Leverkusen and Red Star Paris in Germany and France respectively.”
Professionalism of the sides”
“The professionalism of all the teams was visible on and off the field which resulted in a great second day of the tournament.”
Final thoughts:
“Tomorrow, all of the teams will play another two matches, which will bring the total to 5 matches for each team in three days. I would like to wish everyone a successful third and final day of the tournament.
Following Friday’s matches, Performance Director Patrick van Leeuwen spoke about the first day of the Maccabi Tel Aviv FC Under-19 International Tournament:
“The first day of our International U19 tournament has come to an end and we have seen some good matches from the participating teams although the weather gave us some problems and we had to make some changes in the program”
The camera’s lens: Day 1 of the International U-19 Tournament
Good atmosphere:
“All in all everything worked out well and our Academy employees created a good atmosphere for youth football development.”
Plenty of football to come:
“Over the next couple of days, we will be able to see more matches being played by all of the teams. The matches will give everyone plenty of football to talk about from the coaches and players to our spectators as well.
About the upcoming matches:
Tomorrow, Saturday, the matches begin at 11:00 and we hope to see you at our training ground Kiryat Shalom to enjoy youth football.”
The Camera’s Lens: The Tournament’s Final Day
Closing Ceremony & Celebrations
Maccabi Tel Aviv Matches
Day 3 Match Photos
Trains to and from the State Cup match in Haifa
Maccabi Tel Aviv will face Maccabi Haifa in the State Cup Round of 16 at Sammy Ofer Stadium on January 24th at 21:00.
Click here to purchase match tickets
There will be a special train following the match from Haifa Carmel Beach Station to the Moshe Dayan Rishon Le’Zion Station.
The train will stop at the following stations: Binyamina, Hadera, Netanya, Sapir, Beit Yehoshua, Herzliya, Tel Aviv, Holon and Bat Yam.
The train will operate as a “Fill & Go” and will wait for passengers should there be overtime and penalties.
Please refer to the Israel Railways Website for the available trains to the match.
Please note that a special round trip ticket will be sold for the train with a 20% discount at the ticket windows and ticket machines at the following stations: Binyamina, Hadera, Netanya, Sapir, Beit Yehoshua, Herzliya, Tel Aviv, Holon and Bat Yam, Rishon Le’Zion Moshe Dayan, Nahariya, Acre, Kiryat Haim, Kiryat Motzkin, Lev HaMifratz, Haifa Mercaz and Haifa Bat Galim.
Davidzada: “I’m happy here at Maccabi and I hope to stay“
Ofir Davidzada scored Maccabi’s first goal of the match to draw the Yellow & Blue even at 1:1 in the first half and the defensive back looked back at the team’s performance as well as his own:
“It’s a great feeling and the best feeling for any footballer. The goal bought us back into the game so it was very important,”
Moving into first place:
“We played hard and worked to get back to where we needed to be and we hope to continue that way. First place is nice, but we know that in football anything can happen and this is before the playoffs so we have to keep our feet on the ground.”
Playing with a big squad:
“It’s great that players are doing well and giving 100% no matter who is playing. That’s what’s most important.”
The race for first place with Hapoel Beer Sheva:
“I am concentrating on Maccabi and that’s where I’m playing right now. Beer Sheva will be in the race the rest of the season.”
On loan:
“I’m happy here at Maccabi and I hope to stay but it’s not up to me. I just have to keep working hard.”
Itzhaki: “We have to continue to go after every ball”
Barak Itzhaki was in the starting lineup against his youth club and Jordi Cruyff’s decision paid dividends as the veteran striker scored the match winner:
“We knew that Ashkelon was a tough team and we’ve had problems with them in the past as they always play well and tough. They play very defensive and what’s most important is that we won.”
Going into first place:
“We don’t want to declare anything because it will just sound a bit funny. We always go after all of the available titles. I’m happy we are in first and I hope that’s how the season will end.”
Changes in the club over the past few months:
“There’s no question that we’ve seen a change over the last few months. We have a new system and we are constantly making changes and the players are in the right places. Everyone knows that we have a good team and even when we aren’t playing we are winning and collecting points that will need at the end of the campaign.”
About his own play:
“I always hear things in the background. This was also the case last season when I didn’t play just like the start of this season. I knew that I would score my goals. I like to play in the box and when I’m in the area I also score. I’ll continue to work hard and it means nothing that we are now in first place. It can become undone in seconds. If we continue to be focused as we are right now and we continue going after every ball, that will be the best way to show how serious we are.”
Cruyff: “The team has good momentum”
Jordi Cruyff, the Yellow & Blue Head Coach spoke about his club’s 3:1 victory against Hapoel Ashkelon that moved Maccabi into first place:
“I think it’s important that we can continue our winning ways. The second half we had a bit more rhythm and looked a bit more threatening and for the third game in a row we had to get to the 2:1 thanks to Barak (Itzhaki). But again we made it difficult for ourselves by giving up a soft goal and creating a mountain to climb out of. Against teams that play close it’s difficult to find space but in the end we deserved to win and we will look forward to the next game.”
Back into first place after 48 games:
“To me personally it doesn’t mean anything and it shouldn’t mean anything to us. It’s not important where we are now but where we are at at the end of the season. It’s the least important detail of the match. The team has good momentum.”
Changes over the few last matches:
“We stepped it up and we all understand that things were going in the wrong direction. The first thing is to show character and play with a certain level of aggressiveness on the pitch. We tried to find a system that gave us defensive security, play in the box and win our battles in the midfield. More than the system, it’s been the players that have stepped it up higher and the players who were missing are now back and there is healthy competition. It’s a headache situation for a coach but I prefer this headache situation than the one we had a few months ago.”
Suffering first:
“It’s a marathon and it’s just another round to come to the end in the best possible way. I know that to win things you need to suffer first and we suffered difficulties and a lot difficult games, losing a lot of points. Now it’s time to recover what we lost and show that we are a candidate for the title.”
Transfers:
“It won’t be crazy spendings. If we see something we will see, but we have a good squad.”
Set pieces:
“We haven’t conceded a lot of goals on set pieces but we are working on them in practice but we still have yet to see improvement.”
Opening up the attack:
“We wanted to play with two strikers and Barak as the third, but we needed to create space and that were the problems we had in the first half, but we ran out of space. That’s what we worked on in the second half to play more offensive with less strikers.”
Cup match against Maccabi Haifa on Wednesday:
“Maccabi Haifa will be tough. They have an excellent squad, players, fans and stadium. We have to make sure that the beast doesn’t wake up against us. Every time we drop 1% of energy we put ourselves in trouble. We have to be focused. A Cup game is always different than a league game. When they connect they will be dangerous.”
Concerned when the match was 1:1:
“We had three subs with the idea to change something as we would use Dasa to open up and then we scored. There was still a lot of minutes to be played and we made the subs regardless.”
First Place: Maccabi defeats Ashkelon 3:1
Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Hapoel Ashkelon on Matchday 19 of the Israel Premier League Ligat Ha’Al thanks to goals by Ofir Davidzada, Barak Itzhaki and a penalty by Eliran Atar. Dovev Gabbay gave the visitors an early 5’ lead, but the Yellow & Blue came back with three unanswered goals to collect the 3-points to move into first place.
Jordi Cruyff Starting XI included keeper Predrag Rajikovic along with Captain Sheran Yeini, Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi, Ofir Davidzada, Dor Micha, Dor Peretz, Eyal Golasa, Barak Itzhaki, Eliran Atar and Vidar Kjartansson.
Available on the bench were keeper Daniel Tenenbaum, Eli Dasa, Yuval Shpungin, Jose Rodriguez, Avi Rikan, Aaron Schoenfeld and Cristian Battocchio.
First Half
Golasa had the match’s first chance when he unleashed a shot from 20 meters but Aiyenugba was in place. However, Ashkelon struck first as Dovev Gabbay knocked in a Milan Smiljanic attempt on target following a corner for a 1:0 lead in the 7’.
But it didn’t take Maccabi long to draw even as Atar chipped a beauty of a ball to Ofir Davidzada who sent it into the far corner in the 14’, 1:1. Ten minutes later Gabbay tried his luck from long distance but Rajikovic made the leaping save to keep the score as is. In the 28’ Micha attempted to get Vidar the ball but his pass didn’t arrive at the intended target while 6 minutes later Atar’s bicycle kick chance was taken care of by Aiyenugba.
Peretz took a shot from 16 meters out in the 36’ but the Ashkelon keeper was again in place and 4 minutes later Ashkelon was forced to make a substitution due to an injury to Shay Haddad as Rudy Haddad came on in his place. The half came to an end with the score deadlocked at 1:1.
Second Half
Micha had Maccabi’s first chance of the second half in the 50’ when he took a Yeini pass on the right, but his short angled shot was saved by Aiyenugba as was Itzhaki’s chance from the right side of the box while Atar’s 52’ header just missed the left post. Ashkelon had two quality chances in the 64’ when an alert Rajikovic made a kick save off a Benbenishi shot which he then followed up with a leaping grab.
But Maccabi went the other way as Golasa sent Itzhaki a gorgeous ball that the veteran striker headed into the goal for a Yellow & Blue 2:1 lead in the 64’. Avi Rikan and Eli Dasa came on for Dor Peretz and Ofir Davidzada following the strike. Itzhaki then picked up a yellow card in the 66’. Golasa tried his luck from way downtown in the 68’ but his off balance attempt went way over the bar as Maccabi began pressuring Ashkelon in search of a third goal.
Cristian Battocchio came on for Itzhaki in the 80’ as Cruyff freshened up the attack. Rikan and Battocchio led a charge downfield as the former was yanked down in the box by Rudy Haddad in the 86’ good for a penalty that Atar converted for a 3:1 Maccabi advantage as the Yellow & Blue took the 3-points to move into first place.
Ticket Sales State Cup Round of 16 against Maccabi Haifa
The Yellow & Blue continue their Israel State Cup journey with a Round of 16 match against Maccabi Haifa at Sammy Ofer Stadium on Wednesday January 24 at 21:00. Tickets are now on sale for the general public.
Tickets are on sale via the Leaan Ticket Office located at 101 Dizengoff Street Tel Aviv, telephone *8780 and the Leaan Website.
Please note:
* Print at Home is available and recommended
Ticket prices
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans will be seated in South Section K.
Leaan Ticket Office: 66 NIS
Telephone/Website: 71 NIS
Ticket Collection
Tickets may be collected at the Leaan Ticket Office located at 101 Dizengoff Street between Sunday-Thursday 09:00-19:00, Friday 09:00-13:30 and on Matchday until 12:00.
Tickets may be collected on Matchday at the Sammy Ofer Stadium South ticket windows beginning 3 hours prior to the match
Maccabi “Shachar” captures the International Youth Tournament
The club’s Under-19 side began the final day of the MTA International Youth Tournament with a 1:1 draw against Bayer Leverkusen and followed that up with a 3:1 victory over Maccabi Haifa to take home 1st place.
Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI included Daniel Peretz, Tomer Machluf, Alon Shtrozberg, Yoav Hofmayster, Noam Cohen, Tamir Glazer, Prince Thomas, Mufleh Shalata, Eyal Hen, Eylon Almog, William Agada.
The first half began perfectly for Maccabi as striker Eylon Almog found the back of the goal for a 1:0 lead in the early minutes of the contest. The majority of the half was played aggressively in the midfield as both side’s looked for quality chances. However, it would be Leverkusen who would score via penalty to even up the score at 1:1 just before the break. The young Yellow & Blue continued to press for a go ahead goal in the second half and had a number of wonderful opportunities thanks to Almog and Shalata but the Leverkusen keeper was up to the task. Prince Thomas was issued a second yellow card that left Maccabi with 10-men as the contest ended deadlocked 1:1.
Later on in the day, Tzarfati’s side faced Maccabi Haifa with the following Starting XI: Daniel Peretz, Tomer Machluf, Alon Shtrozberg, Yoav Hofmayster, Noam Cohen, Tamir Glazer, Yoav Hofmayster, Mufleh Shalata, Eyal Hen, Eylon Almog, William Agada.
The match started well for the young Yellow & Blue as Almog and Hen scored in the first half to give Maccabi a 2:0 lead at the break. Agada found the back of the goal in the second half good for a 3:0 lead as the Greens pulled a goal back before the final whistle as Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv defeated Maccabi Haifa 3:1 and were crowned Champions of the tournament.
Day 3 Results
Hapoel Rishon Le’Zion 1:0 Red Star Paris
Rishon: Amit Mor
Maccabi Haifa 1:1 Beitar Jerusalem
Haifa: Maor Levy
Jerusalem: Roie Padida
Bayer Leverkusen 4:0 Red Star Paris
Leverkusen: Govan Yetzlin x2, Klaus Song, Sam Sherak
Rishon Le’Zion 2:1 Beitar Jerusalem
