Omer Atzily, one of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s summer recruits looked his at his side’s 1:0 (2:0 aggregate) win over Panionios from Athens, Greece as the Yellow & Blue moved into the Europa League Playoff Round:

“It was an important win that sent us to the next stage and I can’t wait for Friday’s draw to find out who or opponent will be. But we have an important match this coming Sunday night and we will prepare for that contest properly.”

Start of the season:
“It’s no secret that I came back to Israel after a rough season, but I am happy to be here and I hope that I will continue to improve each match together with the club.”

Thoughts on Friday’s draw:
“I’m not thinking to much about that, so whatever team we will draw, we’ll draw. The most important thing is that we succeed to advance to the group stages.”

There was plenty of relief after the final whistle was sounded as Maccabi defeated Panionios 1:0 and punched their ticket to the Playoff Round of the Europa League.

“We had a very difficult game today,” explained Head Coach Jordi Cruyff. We couldn’t pass the ball the way we are used. We defended well and this was the type of match where you have to play like men. We held the ball, protected the goal and won the game. I’m happy we did just that.

Style of the match:
“They played with many players on the attack and today was not a day with a lot of midfield quality, it was more battle from the defense line to the attack. For us it was most important to win our duels, our aerial duels and from there try to play.”

Difficulties:
“Panionios made it very difficult for us and we usually try to play much more combination football but we didn’t really get the chance for that today.”

Close contests:
“I think both games were very close. The home game we dominated a little bit more but today we really didn’t have the chance to do so. It was a game that didn’t have many clear chances and mostly shots from outside of the box. I think when we scored today the belief of Panionios went down and it was very difficult for them to score three goals in ten minutes. It was only then when I felt calm.”

Central Defender Tal Ben Haim also spoke about his side’s win: “I grew up at Maccabi Tel Aviv and have been with the Club since I was six years old. My mission is to play well and finish my career where I grew up. We played a fantastic game against a very good side and I’m happy we advanced to the playoffs.”

The Yellow & Blue advanced to the Playoff Round of the Europa League as they defeated Panionios 1:0 (2:0 aggregate) thanks to an own goal by Korbos as the Greek captain deflected an Omer Atzily corner kick into his own goal. The Playoff Round draw to determine Maccabi’s next continental opponent will take place on Friday at 14:00.

Head Coach Jordi Cruyff’s Starting XI included Serbian keeper Predrag Rajikovic with defenders Ofir Davidzada, Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi and Yuval Shpungin in front of him. Captain Sheran Yeini, Eyal Golasa and Cristian Battocchio manned the midfield while Aaron Schoenfeld, Omer Atzily and Vidar Kjartansson provided the attack up front.

Available on the bench were keeper Daniel Tenenbaum, Dor Peretz, Eliel Peretz, Barak Itzhaki, Dor Micha, Avi Rikan and Yonatan Cohen.

First Half
With Maccabi controlling the pace of the match throughout the majority of the first half, Atzily’s free kick in the 28th minute found its way into the box to Kjartansson but the Icelander’s attempt flew over the bar. Four minutes later, Atzily’s free kick from 25 meters out went over the wall forcing the Panionios keeper Matic Kotnik to make a sharp save going to his right as he sent the ball out for a corner kick.

Panionios had their first chance of the contest in the 36th minute as Samed Yesil missed just wide of Rajikovic’s right post while three minutes later the Serbian shot stopper made an impressive diving stop on Vlahos.

Atzily took a 42nd minute screamer but his effort missed the target as Maccabi looked to regain control of the match. Ben Haim picked up a yellow card for pushing down Yesil and Golasa received a yellow of his own for a reckless tackle on Masouras as the sides went into the break goalless.

Second Half
In the 52nd minute Golasa found Kjartansson in the box but his header from a tough angle just missed the target while two minutes later Rajikovic was called upon to make a tremendous save on Hajsafi’s attempt from 17 meters out after a poor clearance by Shpungin.

Atzily attempted another free kick which he put around the Panionios wall, but the keeper made a fine save yet again to deny number 7 in the 63rd minute. Nine minutes later, Savvidis tried his luck from long range but his shot went wide while in the 75th minute Battocchio’s low effort was stopped by the Greek keeper.

Cruyff made his first substitution in the 76th minute as he inserted Dor Micha in favor of Battocchio as he tried to jump start the Yellow & Blue offense. And jump start he would! Atzily took a 78th minute corner that deflected off of Korbos to give Maccabi a 1:0 lead, 2:0 on aggregate.

Dor Peretz was introduced in the 83rd minute for Kjartansson while Avi Rikan came on for Golasa five minutes later as Maccabi advanced to the Europa League Playoff Round. The draw to determine the Yellow & Blue’s opponent will be held on Friday at 14:00.

Just a day after advancing to the Europa League Playoff Round, Maccabi Tel Aviv was drawn against Altach in Nyon, Switzerland and will go head-to-head with the Austrian outfit for a ticket to the Europa League Group Stages.

The Yellow & Blue are seeded in the Playoff Round and will play against a club that is unseeded with the first match on August 17th and the return leg in August 24th.

Cruyff:  “Every team which reaches the Playoff stage is a respectable opponent and Altach is no exception having finished 4th in the Austrian league and managed to knockout Gent in the previous round with a draw away and a victory at home. We won all six of our qualifiers so far and despite playing each time at home first, the fact we are playing the return leg at home in front of our fans is always encouraging”.

SC Rheindorf Altach was founded in 1929 and plays in the Austrian Football Bundesliga. They are a relative newcomer to European football as this only the club’s second season in continental play. The 2015/16 campaign was their first as they lost to Belenenses in the Playoff Round by an aggregate score of 1:0.

This year they qualified to play in the Europa League qualifying rounds by finishing 4th in their domestic league and advanced to the Playoff Round by defeating Belgium club Gent 4:2 on aggregate. Altach plays their European home matches in Innsbruck at the multi purpose Tivoli-Neu Stadium that seats 16k spectators.

Maccabi Tel Aviv visits Panionios this evening in Athens, Greece in the second leg of Europa League Third Round Qualifying at 22:00. The players took a stroll through Athens earlier this afternoon and will head out to the Nea Smyrni Stadium later in the day.

Midfielder Eyal Golasa received a pleasant surprise when a PAOK fan especially came to visit him and he had a jersey from the Greek club with him in the lobby of the club’s hotel. Golasa was excited about the gesture, signed the jersey for the fan and spoke with him for a short while. “This fan came a long way to see me and it’s an amazing feeling. It’s wonderful how much they appreciate you.”

Afterwards, number 23 continued: “It’s great to return to Greece. The atmosphere is always good here and we want to add to that following the contest. We have a very difficult match ahead of us at a stadium that is not an easy place to play in. But we will work hard as we usually do and bring home a good result. There will be a fantastic atmosphere and that will be good for both clubs as well.”

The Yellow & Blue will play their second Toto Cup match this Sunday night, August 6th at 19:00 against Maccabi Netanya on Matchday 3. The clash against the newly promoted side will take place at the Netanya Stadium and you’re invited to come and cheer on the Club as tickets are already on sale. Maccabi fans may purchase tickets for the following sections: Lower (108, 109) and Upper West (204, 207, 208, 209)Stand, Silver and E+. This match is included in the 2017/18 season ticket package.

You may purchase tickets at the Leaan Ticket Office located at 101 Dizengoff Street, Tel Aviv, by telephone *8780 and via the Leaan Website.

Please note:
Print at home is available

Ticket Prices

Leaan Ticket Office
Lower & Upper West Stand – 50 NIS
E+ – 100 NIS
Silver – 150 NIS

Telephone/Website
Lower & Upper West Stand – 55 NIS
E+ – 105 NIS
Silver – 155 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.

Tickets may be collected on Matchday at the Stadium ticket windows beginning 3 hours prior to the match until 45 minutes after the start of the match.

1st Leg Highlights

Maccabi Tel Aviv landed in Athens earlier today for the return leg of Europa League Third Round Qualifying against Panionios on Thursday at 22:00. The Yellow & Blue won the first leg 1:0 and will look to advance to the playoff round.

Prior to the practice, Head Coach Jordi Cruyff spoke at the prematch press conference: “I think that’s it’s clear to everyone that this will be a very difficult match, just like the home leg. This is the second half of the games that we will play against each other and we are ahead 1:0. Now we have to complete the mission and advance to the next stage.”

About Panionios’s performance in the first leg:
“I believe that at home Panionios have made this match a very difficult one for us. Now we have to play at their home stadium and they will play with a lot of passion. It will be very hard to play against them and we will prepare for that accordingly.”

Tomorrow’s game plan:
“We never discuss our game plan. We always try to play our game and we have our style which will try to do tomorrow. This will be a tough match and the result in the first game has made this game wide open. We will have to be focused and prepared for this game.”

Expectations from Panionios and preparing to play in their stadium:
“I’m sure that this stadium will give them a good home push and that the crowd will support them, but we are used to this from our league so it shouldn’t be a problem. I expect that Panionios will want to draw even and wipe out the deficit. Like I said, the result is one that can be erased and it can be dangerous for both sides. I also expect them to play with a lot of passion. They will attack from the beginning and we will have to be ready for that.”

Intention from the get go to defend or try and score a goal:
“Our mentality is to usually play to win. Even for our league matches we never prepare in which we try not to lose but to play and win. It would be a mistake to change this attitude.”

Potential Panionios key players:
“We’ve analyzed the opponent and they have some interesting players. I’m sure that every club analyzes their opponent to know how to prepare.”

Striker Aaron Schoenfeld added: “We are ahead 1:0 from the first leg. It was a difficult match in Israel. I believe that we didn’t play our best game and now we are ready for a battle. We are a team that wants to win every match and we are prepared for this game. I hope that I’ll be able to help my club advance to the next round.”