A surprising guest arrived to Kiryat Shalom Training Ground this week, Mr. Shimon Peres, former president of Israel, paid a visit to Maccabi's youth team complex.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eOe_s5mzCo

This visit was held during the 'Peres Center for Peace' mutual football training initiative, were Israeli and Palestinian kids trained together. Maccabi's CEO Mr. Martin Bain met with the former president and granted him an official club shirt with the number 67 as a gesture to the upcoming Independence Day of the Israeli state.

Peres said at the venue:  "I would like to send my best of wishes to Maccabi Tel Aviv FC. It is always better to play sports then to fight each other. I also want to deeply thank Maccabi Tel Aviv FC for hosting this mutual training initiative between a team from Sderot and the Palestinian Region". 

The annual Remembrance Day for the Fallen Soldiers of Israel and Victims of Terrorism was held yesterday at the Youth Department training complex. Maccabi's CEO Martin Bain attended as did Youth Department director Nir Levin as well as first team captain Sheran Yeini.‎

Sheran Yeini has agreed personal terms to join Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem

Team captain Sheran Yeini has agreed personal terms to join Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem and will leave Maccabi Tel Aviv after 10 years in the senior side.  Vitesse, currently fifth in Holland’s Eredivisie, tabled an official offer to Maccabi a fortnight ago, expressing their intent to activate a buy-out clause in Yeini’s contract and buy the 29 year-old.

 

Yeini joined Maccabi at the age of six and is the longest serving player at the club, with 10 seasons at senior level, 333 appearances and 16 goals. He told the club’s official website: “The decision I took to move on at the end of the season was one of the toughest in my life and a step I have been contemplating for a long while. This decision wasn’t a financial one, nor was it due to a feeling of unhappiness. It was taken because I have the desire to maximise my potential and fulfill my boyhood dream of playing abroad. Maccabi Tel Aviv is more than just a football club or a work-place, it has been a home to me since the age of six. I would like to thank the club and its senior management: Mitch Goldhar the owner, Martin Bain the CEO and sports director Jordi Cruyff, who all treated me with the utmost propriety and made me feel proud to value my association with this club, which has given me so much. The coaching, medical and administrative staff, my fellow team-mates and the fans who followed me and supported me all those years deserve more than just these words, so I will find the right time to thank them. These words sound like a final summary, but my work and the team's work here is far from complete, as all of us will do everything to reach our targets till the end of the season”.

Exclusive on the official Maccabi website, Nosa Igiebor gives his take on Maccabi's 4-1 defeat of Beitar Jerusalem

Last night Maccabi Tel Aviv registered their sixth consecutive victory at Bloomfield Stadium, and in doing so stretched their lead at the top of the Israeli Premier League table to ten points. The whole team put in a spectacular performance and had the home crowd jumping to their feet four times during the ninety minutes it took them to dispatch Beitar Jerusalem 4-1 with style. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97dJsOM8QOU

After the game, Maccabi's Nigerian midfielder Nosa Igiebor gave an exclusive interview to the official Maccabi Tel Aviv website crew and talked about the match, the title race and the support of the Maccabi fans:

"I think this is very important for us. This is what we want and finally we went out there and we worked really hard. We got the three points. We can't drop any points at this point in time so we try to psyche ourselves before the game. We try to talk to ourselves, 'Let's push', and I think we're in good shape".

Nosa also had a word for the home fans: "I think they should continue to support us, they should continue to push us. We cannot thank them enough for coming out all the time and trying to cheer us up. I think we love them and they should continue to give us their support".

At the end of Maccabi's 4-1 rout of Beitar Jerusalem at Bloomfield tonight, goalscorers Dor Micha and Rade Prica took the time to share their thoughts on their team's impressive performance

Tonight Maccabi Tel Aviv welcomed traditional rivals Beitar Jerusalem to Bloomfield Stadium for the first time in the 2014/15 season in their fourth top-six Israeli Premier League playoff tie, and at the end of the evening there were many reasons to celebrate. By comprehensively beating them 4-1, Maccabi not only maintained their fortress on home turf, where they haven't lost since the end of the 2012/13 season. They also defeated their rivals from the nation's capital for the first time since the start of the 2014/15 season. The home side put on a commanding display, with stand-out performances from, among others, midfielder Dor Micha, who scored twice, and striker Rade Prica, who scored just four minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute.

Speaking after the match, Dor Micha took the opportunity to react to the recent announcement that team captain Sheran Yeini will be heading off at the end of the season to play in the Dutch Eredivisie: "Personally I hope we'll keep the current squad intact as much as possible. I'll miss Sheran a lot, we've been together in the dressing room for five years now".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SwbLcADmZI

Micha, who without any question turned in his best performance of the current season, made no secret of his pleasure at the evening's result and at his own personal contribution to the effort: "I suppose you could say that that second goal of mine really stole the show. It's my first brace as a senior team player and it's a fantastic feeling. It's a great confidence booster that (head coach) Pako (Ayestaran) gives me the incentive to play. It just shows how much faith he has in me and I just want to repay that faith on the pitch. I've earned my place in the eleven and I'm happy to support the team every time I go out there". The young midfielder was also enthusiastic about the second-half substitutions that altered the complexion of the match in Maccabi's favour: "It's great to have a coach taking the right decisions that help us out on the pitch, and a bench with such great players that add quality to our game".

One of those second-half substitutions was Swedish striker Rade Prica, who after a long absence through injury scored Maccabi's second goal just four minutes after coming in off the bench. His delight with his recent performances was clearly visible: "In the last games I feel really good again and it's nice to feel fresh again. I said to myself tonight I'm going to go in and score a goal. It took five, six minutes and then the goal was there. It felt really nice and it felt like a big release. The feeling when they're shouting my name is one of the best feelings I will have in my whole career and I will miss that feeling the day I stop playing. My years here have been amazing and our fans are amazing, I love them". Asked if he received such crowd support when he played in his home country Sweden, the 35 year-old Prica replied: "No, never. My years here have been amazing and our fans are amazing, I love them". Prica also expressed regret that his family was not here to hear the Maccabi fans chanting his name: "All of them miss Israel. My wife told me today 'I can't wait to visit you'". Was that perhaps an indication that he's planning to stay at Maccabi next season? "I take one game at a time now and then I'll see what happens next year". Finally, with Maccabi now ten points ahead of their nearest rivals Hapoel Beer Sheva,  he was asked about the prospect of nailing down the title as early as the beginning of May when the team travel to play Maccabi Haifa at their brand-new "Sammy Ofer" Stadium. Prica: "It sounds nice".

Tonight Maccabi beat Beitar Jerusalem 4-1 at Bloomfield in their fourth top-six playoff tie. Head coach Pako Ayestaran: "The work is not finished"

After his team's comprehensive 4-1 victory over Beitar Jerusalem, a club Maccabi had failed to defeat in their first two league outings of the 2014/15 season, head coach Pako Ayestaran made no effort to hide his delight: "I really enjoyed from minute one. Maybe the second part of the first half was the worst part of the game because we lost our patience a little bit but the first fifteen minutes I think were thoroughly enjoyable, to see the ball flying on the pitch from one position to another, the players arriving in the right position, arriving easily to the wide positions. I am really pleased about the way the team has arrived to the play-off and the way we are playing".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SwbLcADmZI

The coach was also asked about his decision in the second half to send on striker Rade Prica and change the positioning of a number of players on the pitch, in particular winger Tal Ben Chaim: "As soon as Rade was on the pitch, you want to get the best of Rade, and that is finishing into the box. You need a player with a right foot on the right of our attack and when Tal is on the left he always tries to turn to the middle to shoot and with Rade I thought it was better to keep the width from the right and the goal came as well. The games change during the ninety minutes and what happened at the beginning sometimes doesn't happen after half time. The decisions are down to what you see on the pitch".

Asked if he was pleased for Rade, who scored Maccabi's second goal on the night, the Spaniard replied: "Really pleased because he has gone through a very difficult moment, with a long injury that has been difficult. He's put in so much effort to recover that he really deserves this reward. Every player wants to play ninety minutes and wants to be among the eleven starters, but this is a player who, whatever you ask of him, he's ready to give to the team".

Finally, Pako was also asked about the possibility of the team succeeding in the Champions League next season: "We have to be focused on the work, the work is not finished and I think there are important targets to work for for the club. Now we have to think about that this team has to be able to win the championship, and another target that is the Cup. These are the targets that are close by".

With Maccabi's home play-off tie against Beitar Jerusalem just around the corner, it's time to look back at some of the most spectacular encounters between the two clubs in recent years. Part two of a series

Season 2009/10, gameweek 15: Maccabi Tel Aviv – Beitar Jerusalem 4-3

Perhaps not a season either side will look back upon with pride, but at this match both teams produced one of the most spectacular displays in the long rivalry between them. Both sides were blessed with head coaches of legendary proportions: Maccabi's greatest ever goalscorer Avi Nimni for the home side and the equally acclaimed Itzhak Shoom for the visitors. That season, two members of Maccabi's current squad were both on the books at Beitar, defender Eytan Tibi and striker Barak Itzhaki , who was already practising his renowned overhead kicks at his future home venue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjuXxXeKQ8o

The opening moments of the match looked ominous for the home side as Beitar striker Toto Tamuz scored on eight minutes to put the visitors ahead 0-1. Maccabi equalised on 26 minutes when Serbian midfielder Ivica Ilayev crossed to Bolivian defender Ronald Raldes, whose header was deflected into the path of an onrushing Sheran Yeini, who walloped home to restore parity at 1-1. Twelve minutes later the home crowd were treated to another spectacle, as defender Roni Gafni provided for midfielder Tamir Kachlon, who scored from the same spot as Yeini and turned the tide at 2-1. And If the first half hadn't already provided enough excitement, on the stroke of half time Barak Itzhaki treated the visiting fans to one of his signature (half) overhead efforts to bring Beitar level at 2-2 going into the break.

The second also opened with a storm as five minutes in Tamir Kachlon turned provider for midfielder Yossi Shivhon, whose header restored Maccabi's lead at 3-2. Five minutes later it looked like the home side had put the contest to bed when Zambian striker Emanuel Mayoka scored Maccabi's fourth. But it was Barak Itzhaki who would have the final, if not decisive, say in the match when he rounded two defenders to fire past Maccabi keeper Liran Shtrauber and settle the score at 4-3.

After two encounters with Beitar Jerusalem at Haifa's "Sammy Ofer" Stadium, Sunday at 8.15pm Maccabi will face their rivals from the nation's capital at Bloomfield for the first time this season

Against the background of preparations for Maccabi's Sunday night top-six home playoff encounter with Beitar Jerusalem, head coach Pako Ayestaran spoke to the official Maccabi Tel Aviv website crew and touched on the fact that Maccabi had not won in the sides' two previous league engagements. Were there any special preparations for this third attempt to put one in the win column? "Not at all. When they asked me previously about this type of runs I always said I don't care about them. The only thing I care about is to improve my team, be sure that we are ready to perform against any team and the result will be as a consequence". And will facing Beitar for the first time this season on home turf make that task any easier? "It will help, because the players feel really comfortable playing at Bloomfield".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGLJJ6rz2JE

The coach was also asked if the run-in to the league title was much as he had imagined when he first arrived at the club last summer: "I imagined even better because I am always so ambitious that it's not enough, the performances that we had. I am looking forward to seeing the team even play better, especially our game with the ball. But I'm especially pleased about the commitment, with the effort, everything, and especially because the players have arrived with everything they want to be counted".

In recent encounters, winger Tal Ben Chaim has come in off the bench in the second half rather than playing the full ninety minutes. Was this part of an overall game strategy? "I never think that a player could be the key one to come from the bench, I always think about the first eleven. I think regarding what I see in the training sessions, regarding the last game and regarding the opposition we are going to play against".

After Sunday's home encounter against Beitar, Maccabi will head out for four consecutive contests on the road, including the State Cup semi-final against Maccabi Ahi Nazareth at the end of the month. Did that require any special preparations? "We never prepare anything differently, playing away, playing at home. Our aim always is the same and it's going to continue being the same, playing at home or playing away. Always there is a risk of being relaxed thinking that everything is done, but we know this is not the case. We know that the gap of eight could be in one week five and if you have two defeats in a row you are already at two points for the next contender. In this case it's something we don't think about, especially because we've got targets above and beyond the league table. In this case, I think this is the target at the moment".

Maccabi Tel Aviv Football Club look forward to the continued support of all our supporters, including at Sunday night's game against Beitar Jerusalem. The club in general, and the players in particular, are proud of Maccabi's record of condemning any forms of violence or racism, both in and outside the stadium. We feel confident that our most treasured fans unequivocally share those sentiments and will act in accordance with them.