Jordi Cruyff, the Yellow & Blue Head Coach addressed the media ahead of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Israel Premier League Ligat Ha’Al Matchday 17 encounter against Maccabi Netanya at the Netanya Stadium on Tuesday January 9 at 21:00:

“It’s an important game against a team who has made life difficult for many teams including us. They have a unique way to play that many have not found a solution against. We have a home game and we have to keep putting pressure on the table leaders. It’s a must win game.”

Putting out the best team game by game:
“We will put the team that we think is necessary. There are players who have played a lot this season and I don’t believe in Team A or Team B. Some players have momentum and we have to find the best team to play.”

Looking ahead to Netanya:
“The team knows about the differences between the Cup and the league. You also know when it’s 0:0 against MMBE at the half that they you have to step up. Netanya has given us problems this season and the league match we were fortunate to take the 3 points, which was deserved but tough. They play fresh football which I respect and I like. The players know the dangerous of Netanya.

Going game to game:
“Every game is a test for us as to where the season is going due to the fact that we lost points and now we are recovering. We just keep going from game to game and only then will we look at the next one.”

January transfer window:
“We are working on things and when the moment comes we will announce it.”

About Dor Micha:
“Dor is an important player for the club and it’s obvious to me and to many others. He has adapted to playing many different positions and is a player that can make a difference. It’s a strength that Dor has developed over the years and he’s tough to replace. It was an important objective to renew his contact and keep him at Maccabi. That’s good news for the club and the fans.”

The State Cup Round of 16 opponent Maccabi Haifa:
“Derbies against Hapoel are always special and anyone who likes Israeli football wants to see Hapoel Tel Aviv in the highest division. Penalties are always a lottery. If you want to win the cup then you have to beat the next opponent.”

Winning the Cup:
“If you want to be winners you have to overcome the next opponent and it’s never easy to defeat the same team two games in a row.”

On Jose Rodriguez:
“The team over the last month has been a bit better, physically and have been more aggressive. He’s a good player and his moment will come as there is not A or B.”

The Israel Premier League Ligat Ha’Al published the dates and times of the fixtures through Matchday 23. Maccabi will host Maccabi Netanya on Tuesday January 9 while they will head to Sammy Ofer for a date with Maccabi Haifa on Monday January 16.

The balance of the upcoming fixtures include:

Sunday January 21, Ligat Ha’Al Matchday 19: Maccabi Tel Aviv – Hapoel Ashkelon (20:30)
January 23-25: State Cup Round of 16 – Maccabi Tel Aviv will face Maccabi Haifa
Sunday January 28, Ligat Hga’Al Matchday 20: Bnei Yehuda – Maccabi Tel Aviv (20:30)
Sunday February 4, Ligat Ha’Al Matchday 21: Maccabi Tel Aviv – Hapoel Beer Sheva (21:00)
February 6-8: State Cup Quarterfinal 1st leg
Sunday February 11, Ligat Ha’Al Matchday 22: Hapoel Acre – Maccabi Tel Aviv (20:15) * Date and time may change due to the State Cup matches
Saturday February 17, Ligat Ha’Al Matchday 23: Maccabi Tel Aviv – Hapoel Raanana (16:00)

It’s not just everyday that a Liga B club faces Maccabi Tel Aviv in the State Cup Round of 32, but that’s exactly what Bnei MMBE had the opportunity to do on Saturday night as 1,500 fans made the trip to Netanya. Following the match, the Maccabi and MMBE players had dinner together as the visiting keeper Eyal Vakart spoke about the experience of a lifetime:

“It’s an experience that won’t be forgotten by any of us for a very long time. From the day we knew that we drew Maccabi Tel Aviv we knew that this was going to be something special. I am happy that we represented the club and the area of the country with pride and these are the things that give on the boost to continue playing football.”

Proud to be part of the experience against Maccabi:
“I told the guys that they can be excited about playing Maccabi, but the minute you step on the pitch you have to put that aside. I’m happy that up until the 70’ we were able to keep the match within reach at 0:0, but Maccabi is a footballing empire in Israel from management and organization to the smallest details and I’m proud that we were able to take part in this experience.”

The beautiful game:
“What is beautiful about football is that you can put everything aside after the match, eat together and speak together no matter what the result would have been.”

After defeating Bnei MMBE 3:0 in the State Cup Round of 32, Maccabi Tel Aviv will play Maccabi Haifa in the Round of 16 after the Greens defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv on penalties. The Yellow & Blue will visit Sammy Ofer Stadium between January 23-25 with the time and date to be determined.

Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Bnei MMBE 3:0 in the Israel State Cup Round of 32 and one of the players who had chance to feature for the Yellow & Blue was keeper Daniel Tenenbaum who spoke about the match from his point of view:

Barak Itzhaki who scored Maccabi’s first goal of the match spoke about his side’s play in the 3:0 win over Bnei MMBE to advance to the State Cup Round of 16:

“It was a typical State Cup match. We didn’t play well in the first half and I have to take my hat off to them as they put up a good fight. They tried to do the best they could, but we showed our quality in the end.”

More about the match:
“It’s part of the match and we got it at halftime after the first half. We came out in the second half and finished off the match.

Will it be enough on Tuesday against Maccabi Netanya:
“It won’t be enough and we have to improve, but over the last month and a half we have played well. We have to really give Bnei MMBE credit and I wish them luck the rest of the way.”

Jordi Cruyff, the Maccabi Tel Aviv Head Coach looked back at his side’s 3:0 win over Bnei MMBE in the State Cup Round of 32:

“I think that the second half was better. We had a plan as for the substitutions and I was hoping not to have to put them in, but we had to because the result wasn’t good enough and neither was the game play. But the fact that I had to put them in says it all.”

The upcoming match against Maccabi Netanya:
“We have to play better as we have in the past month in the league, with the same attitude aggressiveness and desire.”

About the Starting XI:
“I don’t believe in first or second lineups. We have a squad and we want to win everything that we can. We had this squad in the Europa League, the league, we won the Toto Cup with it and we will fight for the State Cup.”

The Yellow & Blue advanced to the State Cup Round of 16 after defeating Bnei MMBE 3:0 thanks to second half goals by Barak Itzhaki, Aaron Schoenfeld and Ofir Davidzada as the visitors had Maccabi goalless for 70 minutes.

Head Coach Jordi Cruyff’s lineup featured a number of changes including Daniel Tenenbaum starting in goal along with a defensive quartet of Yuval Shpungin, acting captain Tal Ben Haim, Egor Filipenka and Ofir Davidzada. Tomer Altman made his first team debut in the midfield together with Jose Rodriguez and Or Dasa while Barak Itzhaki, Eliran Atar and Aaron Schoenfeld played up front.

Available on the bench were Predrag Rajikovic, Vidar Kjartansson, Sheran Yeini, Dor Micha, Matan Baltaxa, Eyal Golasa and Eylon Almog.

First Half
Maccabi had the first chance of the match in the 4’ when Itzhaki sent a cross from the right to Schoenfeld but MMBE keeper Eyal Vakart was in place to make the save while one minute later Ben Haim was issued a yellow card. In the 14’ Shpunign sent a ball into the box to Itzhaki, but his header was taken care of by Vakart as well.

At the 26’ mark, Rodriguez gave the ball to Atar on the left wing as the striker went by two players but his attempt was again saved by Vakart, while 3 minutes later Davidzada sent the ball into the box to Or Dasa but his chance went into the MMBE defense. In the 34’ Rodriguez tried his luck from long distance to no avail while Altman did the same three minutes later and missed the target as well as the half came to an end goalless.

Second Half
In the 50’ Dasa sent a cross into the box that the MMBE defense cleared, however it went to Itzhaki who left the ball for Rodriguez, but his attempt went over the bar while 5 minutes later Schoenfeld’s attempt also missed the target as Maccabi looked to break the deadlock. Dor Micha and Eyal Golasa came on for Altman and Dasa in the 63’ as Maccabi freshened up their offense.

In the 70’ Barak Itzhaki finally broke the deadlock as he pounced on a Micha free kick pass to take a 1:0 lead. Itzhaki almost doubled the advantage when he came in off the left side but hit the outside netting of the goal in the 72’ while one minute later, Itzhaki sent Atar the ball in the box but Vakart was in place to make the stop. MMBE had a terrific chance in the 78’ when Amar Abu Jabal sent a scorcher towards Tenenbaum, but the Maccabi keeper made a fantastic diving stop and sent the ball out for a corner.

The Yellow & Blue would find the back of the goal in the 84’ and 85’ thanks to Aaron Schoenfeld who sent the ball into the goal after taking a Rodriguez pass from the top right corner of the box for a 2:0 lead while Davidzada found the back of the goal one minute later from the left side of the box for a 3:0 advantage. Eylon Almog then came on for Barak Itzhaki in the 86’ as Maccabi moved on to the Round of 16 after winning 3:0 over Bnei MMBE.