The Maccabi Tel Aviv Captain, Sheran Yeini spoke to the assembled press prior to the Israel State Cup Final that will take place on Thursday night, 20:45 against Bnei Yehuda at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem. Number 13 discussed the match ahead and upgrading the club to continue to compete at the highest of levels:

“I can tell you that if we win or not we are looking to upgrade the club and Jordi is working on it. If we win, then it was a good season though it’s not the best because we want to win it all. If we don’t win then we have to further upgrade the Club.”

Favorites?

“There is a lot of talk about who is the favorites. Bnei Yehuda is a good team that beat us this season and they have a good offense and can be dangerous on breaks. They will bring everything they can to win the Cup. Being favorites on paper won’t help. We will come into the match thinking positively with the desire to win the Cup. If we don’t then we have to take it like men.”

The captain added:

“I don’t like to give headlines before the match, but you can judge after the game itself and see the result.”

Lito Vidigal the Yellow & Blue boss spoke at the pre match press conference at the Israel Football Association offices ahead of the Israel State Cup Final versus Bnei Yehuda in Jerusalem at Teddy Stadium beginning at 20:45. He discussed the importance of the fans, the club’s status coming into the match after two league defeats and of course addressed tomorrow’s match:

“It’s one of our targets from the beginning of the season and now we are in the final and we are going to try and win the Cup. We know that it is always difficult but we are focused on our game and it’s very important for Maccabi to win one title this year.”

Looking ahead to the match:

“I’m just starting my work here and I know that it’s a very tough job, but I never run away from anything and I hope I have a lot of work here. Tomorrow is the game and only after the game will we begin to work on next season. Right now we have to focus on this game and it’s the most important game for us. Maccabi always fights for titles every year and right now it’s very important to win the Cup and take home a title.”

State of the club coming into the match:

“Over the last couple of games the players had a difficult time and it’s not good to do this but players are also human beings and their minds were on the final. They have a chance to win the title and win the Cup. They need to be 100% committed.”

Importance of the fans:

“We know that it’s just one game and it’s a 50/50 match. I hope all of our fans come and make a difference and that they will give us 51%.”

Maccabi Tel Aviv will face Bnei Yehuda this Thursday in one of the most important moments on the Israeli football calendar. The Yellow & Blue are appearing in their 36th State Cup Final and want to end the 2016/17 on a high note. Over the course of the Club’s history there have been plenty of amazing moments and this time we are going to head back to one of Maccabi’s most dramatic finals.

2001/02 Season: Nimni’s penalty defeats Maccabi Haifa in the Final
It was a super emotional campaign for Maccabi and the State Cup was no different as during the season Meni Levi collapsed during a league match against Beitar Jerusalem. The State Cup Final pitted the Yellow & Blue against Maccabi Haifa in a match that went 120 goalless minutes at Ramat Gan Stadium. The drama escalated in the penalty kicks until Avi Nimni played hero and had the last laugh helping Maccabi add another piece of hardware to their trophy cabinet. WATCH

Carlos Garcia returned to Kiryat Shalom. The Spanish central defender didn’t come back as a player but stopped by Israel after his season with Turkish side Alanyaspor ended and visited his former teammates and professional staff of the Club at the training facility and gave everyone a boost prior to the State Cup Final this Thursday against Bnei Yehuda.

Maccabi Tel Aviv will meet Bnei Yehuda for the Israel State Cup on Thursday in what is one of the most important dates on the football calendar. The Yellow & Blue will be participating in their 36th State Cup Final in the club’s history and will look to end off the season on a high note. Over the course of the years, Maccabi has had plenty of amazing moments and this week we will look back at some of the great finals of the past. Let’s begin with Chapter One:

1993/94 Season: The State Cup is Yellow & Blue and so is the Tel Aviv Derby
Maccabi didn’t win the League Championship after battling Maccabi Haifa, however, the consolation prize was certainly sweet. Avram Grant’s side took the Derby as his club lifted the Cup for the 18th time in their history. The heroes: Itzik Zohar with a spectacular free kick and Nir Klinger who always seemed to be in the right place at the right time.

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC said thank you to the Adidas Sports Brand after a partnership and extensive cooperation over the past three seasons.

A farewell event was held at the final home match of the 2016/17 season against Beitar Jerusalem where company representatives were present.

The special gathering was attended by Shalom Moliov, Adidas Israel CEO, VP of Marketing Keren Nahir and Sports Marketing Manager Ariel Reznick. Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Commercial Director Sharon Tammam, Merchandise Manager Tal Mualem and Yellow & Blue Captain Sheran Yeini presented three signed and framed jerseys from the last three seasons.

The partnership between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Adidas began in the 2014/15 campaign and over the last three seasons the brand was an important part of the Club’s success including winning the historic Treble, qualifying for the Champions League and Europa League Group Stages.

Commercial Director Sharon Tammam acknowledged the wonderful cooperation between the Club and Adidas while presenting Mr. Moliov a special trophy for the past three seasons of partnering together and said: “We would like to thank you for the special cooperation over the past three seasons. The last few years has seen the Club develop and grow in commercial aspects and that is also thanks in part to Adidas. The connection between Adidas and Maccabi has allowed us to reach new heights together. There is no doubt that our joint work has contributed to the development towards the move that we will launch this summer.”

Merchandise Manager Tal Mualem added: “I would like to thank Adidas and the many devoted people who worked with us over the course of the last three years. As in every business relationship, there is a learning curve and there is no question that we learnt how to develop over the past few years while also developing the relationship in the best possible way.”

Adidas Israel CEO, Shalom Moliov acknowledged the Club at the farewell event and said: “This event is very exciting for me. Every relationship has its ups and differences and I purposely didn’t say downs but differences. At first, it also took us time to understand what type of large operation we entered but we learnt it over time. In the end it was a fun and fruitful cooperation which saw success domestically as well as in Europe.”

Maccabi Tel Aviv will face Bnei Yehuda in the State Cup Final this Thursday May 25th at 20:45, Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem. The Israel Football Association in conjunction with the Israel Police have published important information for fans that will be coming to the match.

Due to the large number of fans that will be attending the match, the police recommend using public transportation.

Train
Israel Railways will increase the amount of trains that depart Tel Aviv for Jerusalem both in frequency and in the amount of passenger cars.

To the match (From Tel Aviv Savidor)
1. Regular train 17:44
2. Special train 18:15
3. Regular train 18:44

Following the match, 3 special trains will depart on a “Fill & Go” basis from the Jerusalem Malha Station to Tel Aviv Savidor. The trains will also stop at Lod, Tel Aviv Hagana and HaShalom.
*Private vehicles will not be allowed to park along the access roads around the Sports Center*

Shuttles
*The shuttles will return fans to the parking lots. Ushers will direct fans to the shuttle busses.*

Maccabi fans will be able to use the Bate, Technological Park, Mt. Herzl and HaLaum Parking lots. Fans wanting to access these lots must use the main entrance to the city – Sderot Herzl.

Fanzone Shuttles
Fanzone will be providing transportation to the State Cup Final just as in years past. Pre-registration is necessary in order to use this service and spaces are limited.

IMPORTANT! You must purchase a digital ticket via the Fanzone website and present it to the driver.
**Printed tickets will not be accepted**

Shuttles for Maccabi Tel Aviv fans – http://bit.ly/Cup-MTLV-2017-Site

Shuttles will leave from a number of cities including:
Bat Yam
Givatayim
Herzliya
Holon
Jerusalem
Petah Tikva
Rishon Le’Zion
Ramat Gan
Ramat HaSharon
Raanana
Tel Aviv – Jaffa

Any questions concerning the shuttles should be directed to Fanzone via their website.

Police Guidelines
Fans are asked to arrive early to the match in order to avoid long lines at the entrances of the stadium and at the turnstiles.

Traffic arrangements on Matchday:

• Beginning at 16:00, roads around the Sports Center will be closed to private vehicles including Benvenisti, David Ayalon, Agudat Beitar, Modaii.
• It’s recommended to use the Begin Highways (Road 50) towards the Gilo Neighborhood.
• Private vehicles will not be allowed into the Malha and Katamon neighborhoods other than residents of those areas.

We urge fans and drivers to use the WAZE Application to find out the latest and most up to date traffic information for road closings and openings following the match.

There will be undercover police officers in order to maintain order and security who will act when needed to and show zero tolerance to those fans who will attempt to disrupt the order. We urge all of the fans to show patience and obey the instructions of the police.