After advancing to the Europa League Group Stages Macabi Tel Aviv found out the identities of the clubs they will play in continental action. Villarreal from Spain, Astana from Kazakhstan and Czech side Slavia Prague round out the 3 opponents that the Yellow & Blue will face beginning on September 14th.

Schedule:
Europa League Schedule:
14/9 A Slavia Prague
28/9 H Villarreal
19/10 A Astana
2/11 H Astana
23/11 H Slavia Prague
7/12 A Villarreal

Head Coach Jordi Cruyff said after the draw: “Before the draw you just never know who you will get. I think it’s a tough group. Usually you expect to get a club that you know that you’ll be able to take points from. After 8 matches I’m happy that we were able to advance to the group stages. It wasn’t simple but we did it. This was a great feat for us and since we were able to gain points by being in the competition last season we were able to be seeded throughout the campaign. It’s a bit disappointing that since we were in Pot 2 we ended up with a very difficult club from Pot 3. Our priority is always the League and we want to compete for the championship with European football coming second in that order of preference.”

Villarreal
“The Yellow Submarine” is one of Spain’s regular Europa League participants and holds the record with 54 appearances in the competition. Last season the club finished in 5th place in La Liga and is always a threat in European football advancing to the semifinals in the 2015/16 season where they eventually fell to Liverpool.

Villarreal’s coach is Fran Escribá and he will enter his second season with the club after replacing Marcelino García Toral who had much success with the side who plays at the Estadio de la Cerámica, formerly the El Madrigal stadium. Some of the top players in the squad include defender Mario Gaspar, striker Carlos Bacca and midfielders Roberto Soriano and Manu Trigueros.

Astana
The Kazakhstan champion may not come from a traditional footballing country but over the last few seasons they have been able to become a European power and advanced to the Champions League Group Stages two season ago. Astana enjoys playing at the ultra modern 30,000 seat Astana Arena where Head Coach Stanimir Stoilov has roamed the sidelines since 2014. They are in the Europa League group stages after falling to Celtic 5:0 in Scotland and defeating Israeli Nir Bitton’s club at home 4:3. The players to watch out for include striker Junior Kabananga from Zaire, Ghanaian forward Patrick Twumasi, midfielder Marin Tomasov and central defender Yuriy Logvinenko.

Slavia Prague
They may have been in Pot 4 but for all intents and purposes the Czech Republic Champion are in the Europa League Group Stages after being knocked out of the Champions League Playoff Round by APOEL. Slavia is one of the two big clubs from Prague which also includes Sparta Prague where former Yellow & Blue winger Tal Ben Chaim now plies his trade. Slavia has plenty of fine players including Czech National Team striker Milan Škoda, Slovakian winger Miroslav Stoch who played for Fenerbahce along with Danny who joined the club from Zenit and veteran Halil Altıntop who played many seasons in the Bundesliga.

Please note: Tickets to the away matches will be available through the Leaan Ticket Agency Office and ISSTA Sport ONLY. Ticket package information for the home matches will be made available soon

Eitan Tibi, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s veteran central defender spoke about the match against Altach that saw the Yellow & Blue advance to the Europa League Group Stages while looking at the mistakes that were made that led to the first goal:

“I’m very proud of our record, happy and satisfied as we advance to European Group Stages for the 3rd season in a row. I think that the power we have is to know how to react after making a mistake and the fact that we didn’t let in goals in the other match and in many of the games so far. So it was good that we were able to score two goals today.”

Looking back at the mistakes that were made during the match:
“If I would have begun analyzing the error that was made while the match was going on it would have consumed me and I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate on the match as well. So we all just put the goal aside and played positively for good stretches of the game, in fact even better than the first leg. They had very few chances but the ended up scoring a couple of goals. That’s just part of the game.”

Potentially bringing in a new central defender:
“We have good central defenders and it’s the club’s choice if they want to bring another one in.”

Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder Dor Micha looked back at the match that was as the Yellow & Blue advanced to the Europa League Group Stages after drawing with Altach 2:2, 3:2 on aggregate:

“It may not have been our best game but we had a lot of heart and we battled. We were able to reach our first goal for the season so I’m very happy. The situation got a bit complicated when we gave up that first goal but we ended up coming back twice which I’m very happy about as we showed a lot of character today. Sometimes you have to be good to be lucky and we deserved to advance.”

Thoughts after being down 2:1:
“I didn’t think much and I just wanted to play and encourage the rest of the players to get the goal that we really needed. I’m happy that Sheran was in the right place and there isn’t anyone that deserves it more than him.”

Playing in European group stages 3 seasons in a row:
“It’s an amazing accomplishment and we are creating a tradition, 4 times in 5 years and 5 out of 7 seasons is something very special for an Israeli club. I believe that this is something that Mitch Goldhar had in mind when he came to the club, to create a tradition and we are doing exactly that. Now we will wait to see who we draw in the group stages.”

Clubs that he’d like to draw:
“No thanks about Zenit but it would be great to draw a club like Arsenal but we have to wait and see. Of course we would like to get an attractive club while also having a couple of easier opponents.”

About the fans:
“They give us strength and when we went down 2:1 they really cheered us on. We need them with us and they give us so much.”

Sheran Yeini hasn’t scored many goals in his career but this evening, the Yellow & Blue Captain did what he needed to do to get his team into the Europa League Group Stages. His tying goal helped draw even with Altach 2:2 and sent his side to the continental competition once more:

“We are working very hard and we are a team that tries to make life difficult for our opponent, our focus was on advancing and I am happy that we did just that. I thought we had some very good minutes over the course of the match. Suddenly we gave up a goal and there was a bit of pressure on us but we came back and played more good minutes in a match that there was a lot of pressure from both clubs. At the end of the day we played like real winners. I am very happy that I scored a goal.”

About the rest of the way:
“We gave a good squad and now that we have advanced I don’t know what will happen. I like everyone and I hope that we will all stay together as we have a lot of matches and we have good players. I really believe in my club.”

His role as defensive midfielder:
“I really feel at home. I also played this role in Holland and I learnt a lot of things there. The role here is more defensive and I am working on getting the ball more from the central defenders and go on the attack a bit more.”

Maccabi Tel Aviv advanced to the Europa League Group Stages after a 2:2 home draw and 3:2 on aggregate thanks to goals by Vidar Kjartansson and Sheran Yeini. With the draw tomorrow, Friday in Monaco the Head Coach Jordi Cruyff summed up the match from his point of view:

https://t.co/QdLMulLped

— Maccabi Tel-Aviv (@MaccabiTLVFC) August 24, 2017

“We knew that one goal for them then the story was finished, the team was tired and the legs were tired and we had to defend every millimeter. I must say a big thank you to the fans today. It’s not easy to drive here on a Thursday and then suffer, but there are moments when they are there and they pushed the team forward when we were down 2:1. They were our best player tonight.”

Being in Pot 2 for the Europa League Draw:
“Pot 2 is really amazing to be in, honest as a lot of clubs from 1 & 2 were knocked out, some big clubs, so it shows that it’s not so easy. We finished with 7 wins and 1 draw and we are in pot 2 and that can give us hope for a good draw but there are good teams in pot 3 so we can’t underestimate anyone.”

Rumors about his status as coach:
“The fans already know me good by now. And they don’t have to pay attention to those rumors and that they know better.”

Bringing in new players:
“Arrivals of some players will mean goodbye to others and those are tough decisions. But in order to grow those are things we have to do. I can assure you that Maccabi Tel Aviv has made some big offers to some very good players. They haven’t leaked out and the amounts offered have been on the higher side over the last five six years. We hope to make the last week of August the best week for the club.”

The defense:
“If we lose the ball football is a game of mistakes. I am more angry when we make a mistake when we aren’t playing football and not during the buildup. If you analyze the games you can see the defense has been good. When we gave up a goal we sometimes get a bit shaky. We made it into the group stages and you can see that the players showed character. We had a clean sheet last week and the defense saved us.”

The timing of bringing in new players:
“The registration for Europa League has a different date than the Israeli league so we would want to close deals before that and have them for an additional 6 matches.”

Improving over the next few weeks:
“It was the Maccabi we wanted to see and we had enough chances in the first half. There are things we still need to work on and after Kiryat Shemona on Sunday we have a little break so we can work on some things and we will Ave some time to work on ourselves. The two week break will hopefully help the players recover such as Golasa and Dasa.”

About Aaron Schoenfeld:
“When you have difficulties in the buildup and winger Tal Ben Chaim won a lot of headers last season, so we are using him in a position that is not his natural habitat and we all appreciate his effort.”

On Tino-Sven Susic:
“He is a player that is hungry and he suffered from the heat the first week that he was here. It’s really tough to train in the midmorning. We know what he can give and when he knows his teammates better he will be even better.”

Steve McClaren’s role this evening:
“At halftime he came down and the first half he was in the stands. He was able to see the football on a totally different level from upstairs. He gave us information that we were creating chances and gave a few small things here or there.”

His father Johan Cruyff’s influence:
“I think my father was always proud of me and the level of our football conversations was raised over the last few years. I am always looking to do better, so when we drew today I wanted to win. So it’s good that Steve was here to say to me mission accomplished.”

6th season at Maccabi:
“I never thought I would start my 6th season here and also be a coach. I thought I would be here for 2-3 years. But I have always had a good relationship with Mitch and Jack even though sometimes we disagree and I’m not the easiest person but I’m still here and we are doing good things.”

About tomorrow’s draw:
“I have wishful thinking but sometimes the opposite happens. I think Beer Sheva was extremely unlucky not to go through to the Champions League and it’s very important to have two Israeli clubs in Europe this season.”

After completing the season’s first goal successfully, Maccabi Tel Aviv will now look ahead to the Europa League Group Stages. The Yellow & Blue will take part in the group stage draw in Monaco tomorrow, Friday at 14:00. 48 clubs will be split up into 12 groups with 4 teams in each as Maccabi will have a favorable ranking due to their continental success over the past few seasons. Matchday 1 will be on September 14th and will continue until December 7th with 6 matches in total.

So which opponents could we see in Israel? Some of the options include a number of big clubs from around Europe including Milan and Lazio from Italy, English side Arsenal, Athletic Bilbao from Spain and French outfit Lyon as all of these clubs are in the first seeding group.

Pot 1
Zenit (RUS)
Arsenal (ENG)
Lyon (FRA)
Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Villarreal (ESP)
Athletic Club (ESP)
Lazio (ITA)
AC Milan (ITA)
Viktoria Plzeň (CZE)
Salzburg (AUT)
København (DEN)
Braga (POR)

Pot 2
FCSB (ROU)
Ludogorets Razgrad (BUL)
BATE Borisov (BLR)
Everton (ENG)
Young Boys (SUI)
Marseille (FRA)
Real Sociedad (ESP)
Maccabi Tel-Aviv (ISR)
Lokomotiv Moskva (RUS)
Austria Wien (AUT)
Hertha Berlin (GER)
Nice (FRA)

Pot 3
Astana (KAZ)
Partizan (SRB)
Hoffenheim (GER)
Köln (GER)
Rijeka (CRO)
Vitória Guimarães (POR)
Atalanta (ITA)
Zulte Waregem (BEL)
Zorya Luhansk (UKR)
Rosenborg (NOR)
Sheriff Tiraspol (MDA)
Hapoel Beer-Sheva (ISR)

Pot 4
Apollon Limassol (CYP)
İstanbul Başakşehir (TUR)
Konyaspor (TUR)
Vitesse (NED)
Slavia Praha (CZE)
Crvena zvezda (SRB)
Skënderbeu (ALB)
Zlín (CZE)
AEK Athens (GRE)
Lugano (SUI)
Vardar (MKD)
Östersund (SWE)

The Yellow & Blue are back in the Europa League Group Stages once again thanks to goals by Vidar Kjartansson and Captain Sheran Yeini and last week’s away goal in Austria to cancel out Altach’s pair of strikes to draw 2:2 at home, 3:2 on aggregate. The group stage draw will take place tomorrow in Monaco at 14:00.

Head Coach Jordi Cruyff’s Starting XI included keeper Predrag Rajikovic with defenders Yuval Shpungin, Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi and Ofir Davidzada. Captain Sheran Yeini anchored the midfield with Dor Micha and Cristian Battocchio while Avi Rikan, Aaron Schoenfeld and Vidar Kjartansson were on the attack.

Available on the bench were keeper Daniel Tenenbaum, Omer Atzili, Barak Itzhaki, Sagiv Yehezkel, Egor Filipenka, Tino-Sven Susic and Dor Peretz.

First Half
Vidar looked to give Maccabi a quick lead in the ‘2 minute but his attempt at the top of the box flew over the goal while six minutes later Battocchio’s smart opportunity in the box just skipped wide of the left post. With the Yellow & Blue controlling the majority of the play, it would be Altach who would score first as Hannes Aigner picked off a Davidzada backpass to Tibi and put the ball behind Rajikovic for a 1:0 lead in the ‘20.

As the clock hit ‘24 Maccabi looked to even the score as Davidzada found Schoenfeld from in close but the American-Israeli forward just missed the Austrian goal. In the ’28 Schoenfeld was again in the mix as he picked up a loose ball in the box and tried a bicycle kick but the Altach keeper Kobras made an acrobatic save. Maccabi would have the next chance when Davidzada sent a wicked cross into the box to a waiting Vidar who headed it just wide over the target in the ‘40.

With Maccabi looking for the equalizer they would find exactly that in the ‘41 when Micha sent a ball to Schoenfeld in the box who dropped it to the grass as Vidar pounced on it to draw Maccabi even 1:1 (2:1 Maccabi on aggregate).

Second Half
The Austrian’s looked to retake the advantage but Nutz’s 20-meter scorcher in the ‘55 just missed wide right of the goal. However, Altach’s next chance did give them the 2:1 lead as Philip Netzer slammed the ball home from in close in the ‘58. Cruyff would make his first substitute of the contest as he introduced Omer Atzili for Shpungin and followed that up by bringing on Tino-Sven Susic for Rikan as Maccabi looked to find the elusive tying goal.

And the Captain Sheran Yeini would find that strike as Atzili’s corner went into the box where number 13 took the loose ball and put it home to draw even at 2:2, 3:2 Maccabi on aggregate in the ‘73. Three minutes later Susic almost gave the Yellow & Blue another goal but the keeper made the stop.

In the ‘83 Ngamaleu went down the right wing and sent a dangerous ball into the box but Rajikovic grabbed it to end the threat. Egor Filipenka came on in the ‘85 for Micha as Maccabi tried to salt away the contest. Vidar attempted to do that in the ‘87 when Schoenfeld out the ball down for Vidar but the Icelander’s tough angled attempt went off the outside of the goal.

The referee added 4 minutes of time but Maccabi controlled the pace as they advanced to the Europa League Group Stages!