In just a few hours it's going to happen! Maccabi Tel Aviv will play the second-leg of the UEFA Champions League second round qualifying matches against Hibernians FC from Malta at Bloomfield Stadium where European football will take place for the first time in a year-and-a-half. This will be an especially emotional moment for Dor Peretz who will be making his Bloomfield Stadium European debut. The young defender spoke to the club's Official Website on Matchday to share his feelings:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXZUN3cGX1M

For mobile, click here

"This will be my first European match at Bloomfield and it will be a very personal and emotional moment for me. This will be a very interesting game and one that won't be easy, but we're prepared for it and I am looking forward to the opportunity. We worked very hard for the last match and that's how we got ready for this one. Because we are down 1:2 we are going to have to be even more focused on the task at hand and that's how we are going to approach today's game."

Peretz also spoke about the support that the Yellow-and-Blue will have at Bloomfield Stadium in European play for the first time in a year-and-a-half: "If we do our best on the pitch and the supporters do their best in the stands, then the results will speak for themselves. We feel good, practiced well and worked very hard to get ready. We've prepared very seriously and we can't wait for the match to begin."

Many feel that Hibernians FC will be coming to play for a result at Bloomfield. Peretz didn't want to comment on the opponent: "We aren't looking at them but focusing on ourselves. We believe that if we play the best that we can the result will depend only on us."

 

 

The pitch is green, the seats are waiting, the banners are hanging, everything is ready. Tonight 20:30, the second-leg of the UEFA Champions League second round qualifying matches against Hibernians. Maccabi returns to Bloomfield. Watch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddGpwIgqPtc

For mobile, click here

Just prior to the return of European matches to Bloomfield Stadium, MK Tzachi Hanegbi recalls his first game at the Jaffa stadium, the promises he made and the excitement of the upcoming first official home match of the season

 Returning Home. We've Missed You.

 I remember my first match at Bloomfield Stadium, and of course in was a Tel Aviv derby. It may have been over 45 years ago but the memories are still vivid in my mind like it was only yesterday.

 On that day, the Maccabi 'keeper Haim Levine was very brave and promised a victory over our rivals and I myself made two promises; eternal love for the club and to one day wear the National Team 'keeper's jersey. For now, I've been able or keep one of those promises, however if you count the 27 years in a row that I've been the Knesset team's 'keeper then I've kept both!

During the summer of 2014, Hamas rockets prevented Maccabi from playing their Champions League Qualifying matches at home, however today, the sky's the limit as we return home to Bloomfield once again.

Just like when we played Bayern Munich in a game that was decided on a second half penalty; the unforgettable victory over the stunned Ajax; the draw against the great Juventus; or the dramatic matches against Basel, PSG, Frankfurt and Bordeaux. Tonight hopefully we'll experience another historic match for the ages!

This pitch has seen many trophies and championships including the Treble from just last season, but tonight we have to cheer on our 11 warriors with all of our heart and soul.

 The thousands of supporters that dream of Europe deserve this! Good luck!

 This is an opinion column written by MK Tzachi Hanegbi of the Likud Party, Chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and Chairman of the Coalition. Hanegbi has been a supporter and season ticket holder of the club for many years. 

Maccabi Tel Aviv captain Eran Zahavi spoke to the media about the upcoming UEFA Champions League second-leg, second round qualifying match tomorrow night at Bloomfield Stadium

"It's a huge honor to be the Maccabi Tel Aviv captain as the club believes in me both from a professional standpoint but also as a leader. Last match in Malta was not a good game from many different aspects and we have to look forward to the upcoming match and continue to advance in Europe, that's the main goal for all of us right now. During training camp I had a regular type of injury and it got a bit aggravated, but most importantly I'll be able to play tomorrow and lead the team onto the pitch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYKzVKzD3gg

Everyone likes to talk about last season, but what was last year, was, and we have to put the past aside. We have to look forward to the next game because every day in football is a new day. This is our chance to play in Europe and we have to grab this opportunity and achieve that goal. Tomorrow is an important match that we haven't even played yet, so everyone from the players to the media to the supporters need to relax and wait to see us on the pitch."

Zahavi also talked about his position, other expectations for the upcoming match and for the season that lies ahead: "I'm not sure what position I'll be playing for this coming season even though playing as a false #9 worked well last year as I enjoyed it, but we will see what will be for this season. I know that I am an important player on Maccabi and can play a number of roles.

However, right now I am focusing on the upcoming match and nothing more. There are a lot of very good teams in the Champions League and it will be a very hard task to advance. We need to realize that the Israeli league is the most important competition for us because if we don't win the league there won't be any opportunity to make it to the Champions League."

The captain also discussed the current team: "It was very important to keep our squad together for this year. In fact that is one of the biggest things we have as we are the best team in Israel. We didn't bring any new players in January because the club didn't feel that there were any better players available than what we already had. If a player comes to the team and can be a huge help, that's great, but that's Jordi Cruyff's role. Gili Vermouth continues to be a very important part of our club and we have to give him time to continue to adjust and everything will be ok.

Tomorrow night at Bloomfield Stadium the situation will be totally different as we will have our supporters behind us and that is something we have all been waiting for, a chance to play a European match at home once again."

 

The opening whistle is about to sound and there's not much time left before European football returns to Bloomfield Stadium! It's been over a year-and-a-half since the Yellow-and-Blue have hosted a European match at Bloomfield and tomorrow night at 20:30 they'll be back in action as Maccabi will meet Hibernians FC from Malta in the second-leg of the UEFA Champions League second round of qualifying.

To get ready we're going to take a look back at Maccabi Tel Aviv's first European victory at Bloomfield Stadium back in 2001/02 with a team that included the likes of Dego, Banin, Nimni, Biton, Brumer and Ben Dayan in a six-goal outburst against Zalgiris Vilnius.

The scoring began early and often as already in the 7th minute Dedi Ben Dayan headed home a perfect Tal Banin corner kick for Maccabi Tel Aviv's first ever European goal at Bloomfield Stadium. After another quarter hour of play, Baruch Dego scored on a powerful strike against 'keeper Pavel Leus as Rodrigo Goldberg fed him a fantastic through ball to make the score 2:0.

Minutes before halftime Banin again featured as his deep ball to Dego was controlled off of the midfielder's chest and his right footed shot landed in the back of the goal for a 3:0 lead leaving the Maccabi faithful delirious after 45 minutes of play.

 The second half started the way the first half ended as the goal fest continued for Maccabi. In the 51st minute Tal Banin's free kick fooled the 'keeper and the ball trickled underneath Leus for Maccabi's 4th goal. How fitting that Maccabi's next goal would be an give-and-go between the "Men of the Match" Banin and Dego for the latter's hat-trick to make the score 5:0.

 If that wasn't enough for Nir Levin's squad, Eli Biton put the cherry on top of the biggest Bloomfield win. An offside Ferenc Horvath intelligently didn't play a pass that allowed Biton to easily handle the ball, go around the Zalgiris 'keeper and finish off the match 6:0 sending everyone home knowing that they had just witnessed European history!  

Head Coach Slavisa Jokanovic discussed tomorrow's match against Hibernians from Malta and what he expects from his players on the field of play

"Last week we had a very poor match, both tactically and technically things didn't work. We missed some first half chances and we have to improve so much right now. This was not Maccabi's level of play and it's now our chance to fix what went wrong in Malta. We opened the game up well but in the second half we took a step back. We played a different formation than what had been done in the past so right now we are going to find a solution that will be best for us.

We are Maccabi Tel Aviv and we are the best team in Israel. We can play football in various different ways and we discussed the formation before the game and there were no issues. What happened on the pitch happened and what we talked about in the locker room after the game will stay there."

Jokanovic also talked about player personnel and playing at Bloomfield Stadium for the first time: "I don't want to discuss anything about potential new players until after tomorrow night's match. Right now we need to talk and focus only on what we have in front of us.

Last week Eran Zahavi didn't play as I prefer not use players who have any type of physical issues.  Eran didn't participate in any preseason matches and it was a technical decision to protect him as he will be a very important factor for Maccabi this season.

We have to improve ourselves 100% and we didn't do enough to win the game last week. Everyone says that playing in front of the Maccabi supporters at Bloomfield Stadium will be helpful and because of that we will play attacking football. We will press Hibernians right from the start of the game. I respect all of our opponents and especially Hibernians. As I said after the match they deserved to win the game last week, but now is time to redeem ourselves.

Tomorrow is the most important game for us this season and next week may be even more important, but we have to take care of business first before we look ahead into the future."

 

Ticket sales for the Maccabi Tel Aviv home match against Hibernians of Malta on Tuesday July 21st has ended. Should tickets become available the club will issue an official notification to that matter

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC welcomes the Moses Restaurant Chain as a new partner and official sponsor of the club

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC and the Moses Restaurant Chain have become partners signing an agreement just days ago to join the official sponsors of the club.

Moses is the leading hamburger chain in Israel with 12 branches across the country including three  that are Kosher. A family restaurant that offers a culinary experience that is both diverse and dynamic, Moses will be a warm home for all of the club's supporters to come to from around the country.

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC fans will enjoy special privileges and opportunities at the Moses chain including unique events in the private rooms of the restaurants and more!

As part of the partnership agreement between the Moses chain and the club, there will be a special marketing platform which will include Matchday advertising on the pitch, on the electronic screen as well as on the club's website and social networks.

The Moses chain joins the Maccabi Tel Aviv family of official sponsors which includes HISENSE, HP, MSN REAL ESTATE, PROFIT, KOPELL GROUP, NIVEA, ADIDAS.

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC Marketing Director, Sharon Tammam spoke about the new partnership: "Maccabi Tel Aviv FC is happy that the Moses Restaurant Chain has become a partner with our all-star lineup of club sponsors. Through this new business connection, Moses we will be able to give our customers and supporters exclusive benefits and events."

This morning, Maccabi Tel Aviv celebrated the Grand Re-Opening of the Team Store at the training facility in Kiryat Shalom. The Team Store has been totally renovated and for the special ribbon cutting ceremony players Gal Alberman and Carlos Garcia were present.

Gal Alberman also spoke about the Champions League qualifying matches: "Last week's loss was very hard for all of us. We knew what would happen if we lost and we disappointed everyone. But we're lucky that this was only one half and we can fix the mistakes that we made. Right after the match we were already looking ahead to Tuesday's game at home. In football there are some days that everything goes your way and others not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36p1Ojyo7Yk

for mobile, click here

It's hard for me to say what didn't work last week in Malta but the end result should have been totally different. We didn't downplay our opponent but they were much better than what we had thought. But we have the power to fix what needs to be fixed."

Alberman continued to talk about the importance of this coming Tuesday night's match: "We can't get caught in the trap of asking ourselves what will happen if we win and what will happen if we lose. We aren't looking at who the next opponent will be or should we not get past Hibernians. We have a very important match on Tuesday and we are keeping positive by putting all of our energies behind that. It's just the start of the season and we had a hard game. I don't think it was because of the system we played since we have played many different ways over the last few years. This was only one match and we're not going to jump to any conclusions."

 

This morning, Maccabi Tel Aviv celebrated the Grand Re-Opening of the Team Store at the training facility in Kiryat Shalom. The Team Store has been totally renovated and for the special ribbon cutting ceremony players Gal Alberman and Carlos Garcia were present. Many supporters descended on Kiryat Shalom for this occasion and were also able to see the Ligat Ha'Al Championship plate and Israel State Cup trophies up close and personal! Central defender Carlos Garcia spoke about the marketing activities of the club and talked about the upcoming match at Bloomfield Stadium on Tuesday night:

 

 

"A lot of bad things happened in the last match and it's hard to explain. Now it's time to act and not to talk too much. We are waiting for the game at home on Tuesday night to show what we really are and what happened last week in Malta is not what we're made of. We didn't think that we were already in the next round before we played the match and we respect all of our opponents. They (Hibernians) deserved to win the game and they showed that on that specific night they were better than us."

When asked about making it to the Champions League this coming season, Garcia commented: "Like I said before, now is the time to let our actions and not our words speak for themselves. We can do it, but we have to show that we can. I believe 1000% in our squad and if we bring in new players we will welcome them with open arms. The only thing on our mind is to win the next game.

 

 

Carlos Garcia also talked about the Grand Re-Opening of the Team Store at Kiryat Shalom: "The store is a big step for the club and it's the third one that has opened. Both on and off of the pitch the team is growing and this is a way to get closer to the fans. It's great to have a store right here at Kiryat Shalom where the supporters can see both the players train and then pick up some merchandise. Of course the jersey they should all get is mine!"