Year Founded: 1912

Stadium: Moshava (11,500)

Head Coach: Ran Ben Shimon

 Players who left: Ivan Herzeg, Dedi Ben Dayan, Roie Dayan, Marwan Khabaa, Daniel Dimov, Almog Ohayon, Bryan Gerzerich, Lior Bratkovsky, Yaniv Sagi, David Solari, Tomer Elbaz

Players who arrived: David Twito, Allyson dos Santos, Mindaugus Panka, Xavier Thomas, Dor Hugi, Mohamed Kalebat, Mor Shaked, Oded Gavish

Key player: Dor Elo

Elo is a young player and extremely gifted with the ability to read situations and move the ball very well. With the exception of last match, most counterattacks go through Elo due to his abilities, speed and ball handling as he knows how to find the attacking players and put the strikers in dangerous situations for the opponent.

Past encounters:

For many years the Luzon family’s club have made Maccabi Tel Aviv’s life difficult though last season was a bit different. Last year, Pako Ayestaran’s side faced Petach Tikva both in the regular season and in the playoffs. On Matchday One the Spanish coach began the campaign with a 3:0 win over Petach Tikva at the Moshava Stadium. As well, on the first Matchday of the second round of games the Yellow-and-Blue defeated the Blues of Ran Ben Shimon 3:0. However, in the playoffs on Matchday One the sides split the points in a 1:1 draw while in the final game of the year Petach Tikva had the upper hand winning 2:0. This season, on the first Matchday of the Toto Cup Slavisa Jokanovic’s charges lost 3:0 at Bloomfield Stadium making them the only team that Maccabi hasn’t defeated since the second round of matches last year.

 Scout  Amir Turgeman:

Petach Tikva hasn’t changed the way they play very much since last season even though they underwent a significant facelift within their squad but Kalebat introduces a bit more speed to their attack. The club opened the season very well with four straight victories, however after the loss to Beer Sheva they may come to play a bit more cautious and use a 5-3-2 formation.

Strengths: Their counter-attack. They try to steal the ball in midfield and breakout quickly. Play is primarily on the wings, specifically with Dor Elo who knows how to locate the strikers and give them opportunities on goal.

Defensive game: Other than last game where they gave up five goals we’re talking about a club that plays a very good defensive game especially as a team. All of the players work very hard at both ends of the pitch.

On Matchday Seven, Maccabi Tel Aviv will visit the Moshava Stadium on Saturday night at 20:00 to face Maccabi Petach Tikva. Veteran midfielder Gal Alberman spoke about getting back into training, the challenge that Petach Tikva has posed for the Yellow-and-Blue and more:

On getting back into training after a number of days off:

“It’s good to be back and I’m sure the players who were with their national teams are happy to be back as well. This is a normal type of thing for us as we have a bunch of players on the national team so we’re all used to these types of situations. We have a full slate of games coming up starting off with Maccabi Petach Tikva on Saturday who have given us all kinds of trouble recently. But we will be ready even with the short amount of time we have to get prepare.”

What have you learned about Petach Tikva after losing to them the last two matches:

“We will try to take the important and good things that we were able to do against them and of course we will look to improve and work on the things we didn’t do as well against them. I don’t think the past two encounters will have any influence on this match and we will give our best against Petach Tikva.”

Is this preparation for the Champions League match against Porto:

“The two competitions are so different from one another. You really can’t use the match before a Champions League game as preparation. We are putting all of our energies into the upcoming league match and whatever result we have against Petach Tikva won’t have any impact on our preparations for Porto.”

Alberman’s relationship with Nikola Mitrovic on the pitch:

“We have different roles on the pitch. At the beginning we were fighting for playing time against each other but with time we’ve been playing together as I do my job and he does his. I handle the organization of the match and the defensive side whereas Mitrovic works the ball up field and closer to the opponents goal. He is a player that has contributed a tremendous amount during the time he has been wth the club and he’s a very important player for us.”

Head Coach Slavisa Jokanovic discussed his club’s preparations, the busy month ahead for the Yellow-and-Blue, the security situation in Israel and more:

 “We have some very busy weeks and challenges ahead of us. We’ve played eight European matches, the Super Cup, National Team games and plenty of others in the league and more. This is the situation we are in and we must be ready for the expectations ahead of us on the pitch. The schedule isn’t easy but we’ll put our best effort into it.”

On the current security situation in Israel:

“I’m a football coach and I work with my players on the football pitch. I feel totally safe and secure and I love the city of Tel Aviv, I’m not scared in the least. My family also isn’t worried about me and I’m sure things will settle down soon and we will get back to peace and quiet.”

There are a number of suspended and injured players:

“Nosa Igiebor and Dejan Radonjic are both not fit and I don’t know when they will return to the squad as their condition is still not clear. At the beginning of the year we all talked about how we needed another striker and now we don’t have him. In Nosa’s case we still haven’t been able to figure out the issue and if we can’t do that soon we will have to find other methods to help him. Yuval Shpungin is also unavailable as he just had a medical treatment. Today is the first day in over a week that I have more than eight players to work with.”

Nikola Mitrovic spoke about the upcoming match against Maccabi Petach Tikva and the International break:

 “Maccabi Petach Tikva is a good club but if we play well we don’t have to worry. It’s an important match and we have to make sure we are ready. We worked very hard over the break to prepare for the matches we have ahead of us over the next few weeks. The training sessions were not easy, however they were very enjoyable.”

After over a decade, Maccabi Tel Aviv returned to the grand stage of European Football – The Group Stages of the Champions League. And you, the fans are a big part of why the club is there. But just before you head off to Porto to support the team, it’s important that we remind you of some very important rules and regulations to keep in mind. Remember! The players represent all of us on the pitch, while all of you, the fans represent us in the stands and beyond

Regulation for Access and Permanence

1. The conditions for the entry of spectators into the Estádio do Dragão (in accordance with Article 22 of Law 52/2013, of 25 July) are, namely: a) The possession of a valid entry ticket;
2. b) Refrain from being under the influence of alcohol, narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or products with similar effects and accept submission to control and screening tests;
3. c) Refrain from transporting or personally carrying objects or substances that are prohibited or prone to generate or able acts of violence;
4. d) Consent to a prevention and security personal search performed by Stewards aiming at detecting and inhibiting the entry of prohibited objects and substances;
5. e) Consent to the collection of image and sound under the strict terms of the law.
6. A valid entry ticket is understood as the ticket for the event at issue, event accreditation, and in the case of members of FC Porto, their membership card with respective contributions up-to-date. These documents shall be exhibited to Stewards whenever requested.
7. Access to the Estádio do Dragão is barred to all spectators who do not comply with the stipulations in the previous numbers.
8. Entrance to the Estádio do Dragão to attend sports events shall only be allowed to people over 3 years of age as long as they posses a valid entry ticket.
9. Persons barred from entering the Estádio do Dragão by a decision of a competent entity shall be prohibited from doing so.
10. Firearms, missile weapons, cold steel, bottles, tins, drinking glasses, umbrellas, flagsticks made of contusive material and other objects, which by virtue of their characteristics, can endanger the physical integrity of spectators, including explosive or pyrotechnic substances or devices are prohibited in the Estádio do Dragão in accordance with the legislation in force.
11. It is forbidden to bring drinks and any food product whatsoever into the Estádio do Dragão.
12. The conditions for permanence of spectators in the Estádio do Dragão (in accordance with Article 23 of Law 52/2013, of 25 July) are, namely:
13. a) Refrain from displaying posters, flags, symbols or other signs with offensive messages of a racist or xenophobic nature, intolerants or of any kind of discrimination and political messages;
14. b) Refrain from obstructing access and evacuation routes, especially emergency routes;
15. c) Refrain from practicing violent acts that incite violence, racism or xenophobia, intolerance, discrimination or political manifestation;
16. d) Refrain of disrespect national symbols;
17. e) Refrain from chanting racist or xenophobic songs or prone to generate or able acts of violence, intolerance, any kind of discrimination or political ideologies;
18. f) Refrain from entering areas of reserved access or not intended for the public;
19. g) Refrain from circulating from one section to another;
20. h) Refrain from throwing any objects inside the sports grounds;
21. i) Refrain from using firework material, any other pyrotechnic devices or those producing similar effects;
22. j) Refrain from using horns powered by batteries, electric current or other forms of energy as well as any other permanently assembled noise- producing instruments, with the exception of the sound facilities of the Estádio do Dragão;
23. k) Refrain do disrespect this regulations.
24. Non-authorised entry of spectators into either the sports grounds – competition area – or the security area surrounding it is prohibited.
25. Respect for the seat indicated on the entry ticket is mandatory unless instructions to the contrary are given by a Steward. Standing in sitting areas is forbidden unless authorised by the Security Officer.
26. It is forbidden to exhibit, offer or sale any commercial or promotional articles or to do any type of advertising in the Estádio do Dragão without express authorisation from FC Porto.
27. In accordance with Article 4 of the Law 37/2007, of 14 August it is forbidden to smoke in the concourses of the stadium. It is allowed to smoke in the stands and signed areas.
28. The admission and permanence of spectators in the Estádio do Dragão means unconditional acceptance on their part of this regulation as well as the regulations of the Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional (Portuguese League of Professional Football), Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (Portuguese Football Federation), UEFA and FIFA during competitions supervised by them, including any standards and regulations on safety and the use of public spaces.
29. The spectators at the Estádio do Dragão are obliged to observe instructions given by Stewards.
30. Any spectator disrespecting the standards stipulated in this regulation or whose behaviour is a source of disruption to the comfort and safety of third parties shall be expelled from the Estádio do Dragão. Furthermore, offences of an administrative and criminal nature shall be published in accordance with the terms of the law in force (Law 52/2013, of 25 July).

Prohibited Objects:

RADIOS, LONG LENS CAMERAS, VIDEO CAMERAS, EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL, FIREWORKS, KNIVES AND ARMS, GAS CANNISTERS, DARTS, SYRINGES, TOOLS, EXTINGUISHERS, RIGID CONNECTION RODS, BOTTLES, GLASSES, CANS, LOUDSPEAKER, AIR HORNS, BALLS, UMBRELLAS, HELMETS.