“It is an amazing feeling” he said after scoring his first league goal and fifth in all competitions this season. “To score in the league and help the team is an amazing feeling. To score the 50th goal for Maccabi, the club I began my career is a landmark and I just hope that these goals continue to help the team.”

The 29-year-old Israeli international midfielder who is experience a busy schedule playing for club and country, added: “It is a challenging season with us playing in Europe and all the trips, flights and adjusting to play in two competitions. We are handling it well so far as our points ratio is not too bad but we must believe in ourselves in every game.”

On the race for the league title which this season appears to be a four-horse race, Peretz said: “All the teams are dropping points, they are all playing well at times, and sometimes not so well. We will try and progress on a game by game basis as this is our job. At the end of the day it all depends on arriving at every game fully focused so we could show our best form”.

Preview

Maccabi arrived at Teddy stadium ahead of the WINNER League MD14 match away to Hapoel Jerusalem which would open the second round. Following the two draws in the previous two matches against Hapoel Hadera and Hapoel Haifa, Maccabi are currently fourth in the table, level on points with Maccabi Haifa, but two behind Beitar Jerusalem and six adrift of leaders Hapoel Be’ersheva. Maccabi’s Head Coach, Zarko Lazetic, made several changes to his starting line-up. Roi Mishati, who saved an injury time penalty to secure a 2-1 victory over RFS Riga in the Europa League last week, started in goal. Nemanja Stojic, scorer of the winning goal in Belgrade on Thursday lined up alongside Stav Lemkin as the two central defenders in front of Mishpati, Idan Nachmias on the right and Sagiv Jehezkel on the left completed Maccabi’s defensive back-four. Issof Sissokho who made a substitute appearance against RFS, joined Joris van Overeem and Dor Peretz in midfield allowing Gabi Kanichowsky to rest on the bench. Weslley Patati who assisted twice against the Latvian side and Osher Davida suppied the width on both wings. Eran Zahavi led the line and the team out wearing the captain’s armband aiming to add to his four goals this season.

 

On the bench alongside goalkeeper Simon Sluga, Lazetic named Roy Revivo, Tyrese Asante, Dor Turgeman, Gabi Kanichowsky, Elad Madmon, Henry Addo, Hisham Layous and Ido Shahar.

First Half

Backed by around 4000 fans who arrived at Teddy stadium and offered their vocal support from the moment the players emerged from the warm-up. Two minutes from the start Idan Nachmias sent a cross into the area and Sagiv Jehezkel who ghosted behind Jerusalem’s defense at the far post, headed wide from close range. Shortly after it was Jehezkel again as Osher Davida released Dor Peretz down the right before the midfielder picked Jehezkel whose shot from the edge of the area was blocked by a defender. 

Jehezkel continued to look lively down the left as he dribbled into the area in the 20th minute before releasing a shot that struck the side netting. Eran Zahavi had his first sight on goal right on the half hour mark but his snap shot from the edge of the area was easily collected by Jerusalem’s keeper Nadav Zamir. Six minutes later Maccabi’s pressure paid off as Jerusalem’s defense struggled to clear the danger before the ball fell to Joris van Overeem. The midfielder who waited three years for his debut Maccabi goal, found the back of the net with a clever shot to score his second in six weeks. Zahavi came close to double Maccabi’s lead after Weslley Patati was fouled on the edge of the box. But the veteran marksman narrowly missed the target as he flashed his free kick to the wrong side of the post.

Second Half

Four minutes after the restart Jerusalem were back on level terms as Matan Hozez left two defenders behind before firing into the top corner. Patati tried restoring Maccabi’s lead with two shots in the space of two minutes but both his left and right foot efforts sailed high and wide. Lazetic reacted with a double substitution as he introduced Gabi Kanichowsky and Dor Turgeman for Zahavi and Sissokho in the 63rd minute.

The change paid off almost instantly as Nemanja Stojic won possession deep inside Jerusalem’s half before releasing the ball forward. A Turgeman shot struck the hand of Yonatan Laish before Sapir Berman pointed at the spot. Jehezkel stepped up and successfully converted the spot kick to restore Maccabi’s lead. Boosted by the goal Maccabi pushed forward and increased their lead on 69 as Davida charged down the right and squared to Peretz who tucked the ball home from point blank range for his first league goal this season and fifth in all competitions. Peretz bowed out to a awarding ovation as he was replaced in the 78th minute by Ido Shahar while Elad Madmon came on for Davida. Jerusalem cut the deficit in the ne 90th minute as Samba Diallo beat Roy Mishpati with a fierce low drive to make it 3-2. Inside injury time Lazetic made his fifth and final substitution as Henry Addo came on for Patati. 

Dor Peretz faced the media at a Press Conference ahead of the match away to Hapoel Jerusalem which will open the second league round. With Maccabi third in the table with 27 points, two behind second place Beitar and six adrift of Hapoel Be’ersheva but with a game in hand, Peretz said: “We dropped four points in the last two matches (Hapoel Hadera and Hapoel Haifa), yet we won our match in Europe not with the best of ability but by showing loads of character and plenty of determination. This alone is worth just as much because it shows the players’ and team’s character.”

On the difference between playing in Europe and the domestic competition, the 29-year-old midfielder said: “The character of these matches is totally different but the stage here is a lot more important for us. We need to know there is no room for mistakes, as we must be fully prepared, the players, the staff, as we are challenging for the league title. Such matches reflect on awful lot on the future. We must arrive prepared as best as we possibly can.”

On the penalties Maccabi conceded in the last three matches, Peretz said: “Your role as media is to try find the explanations for everything, but I don’t think that there is a link between Maccabi and this penalty or the other when a certain player commits one. There are controversial penalties. Against Hadera it was a penalty, but was the penalty against Hapoel Haifa a 100% penalty? Difficult to say. We must be more alert and focused but we can’t concede a penalty for everything that happens. We must be a lot more focused as players, understand our place and hope for the decisions to go in our way.”

On the effect of Europe on Maccabi’s season, Peretz said: “Of course it has an effect. We arrive from matches against a certain opponent, with a different style of a game, to matches here. Add that to the combination of all the flights which makes this season into a real journey. This is not an excuse because from game to game we would want to show that we can compete in Europe as well as the league.” With Maccabi’s next match in Europe scheduled for January 23rd away to Bodo/Glimt in Norway, Peretz, who also travelled with the Israel national team for all its’ international matches, explained: “Now we have an entire month to focus on matches here. There will be no excuses not to show up in all our strength and glory.”

Ahead of Hapoel Jerusalem, a team Maccabi managed to beat only in added time when both teams met at Bloomfield earlier this season, Peretz said: “They are an excellent team, with quality players, an interesting game plan who always know how to surprise their opponents. Our role is to prepare for that. Matches against them were always very tight and we must show up and play an intense and aggressive game, to take the right decisions which should help us create chances in win the match”.