Tired of getting the same old gifts at every holiday season? Had your fill of flowers and bonbons? At wits' end about coming up with yet another reward for the child that finds the hidden "afikoman" matzah at the special Passover holiday meal? Your troubles are over!

You're all invited to the Maccabi Tel Aviv online store, or to the official merchandise shops at 147 Dizengoff St. and at the Kiryat Shalom training ground in Tel Aviv, to purchase an MTA GIFTcard, good for a whole range of Maccabi brand items available to you there. And you can load up the card to the amounts of 100, 150, 250 and 400 shekels, the choice is up to you.

And now for the really good news. Specially for the Passover holiday, we're offering you a 10% top-up when you load up your card, absolutely free! So if, for example, you purchase NIS 250 to put on your card, you'll get an extra NIS 25, on the house!

For more details about this special holiday offer just click here.

Moments before Israel meet Wales for a European qualifier, Maccabi defender Yuval Shpungin and Youth Division football director Nir Levin reminisce about facing the Welsh for the Israeli national team

After months of anticipation, the Israel national team will tomorrow (Saturday) finally take to the pitch against Wales at Haifa's brand-new "Sammy Ofer" Stadium, where 30,000 Israeli football fans will be watching them in their attempt to bring the dream of European qualification a step closer. No fewer than five Maccabi Tel Aviv players are expected to take part in the match, but before they get started, let's take a short stroll down memory lane to some earlier encounters with the Welsh and see what two Maccabi eye-witnesses have to say about it.

For anyone interested in the journey back in time, history tells us that recent encounters of the senior Israeli team with the Welsh have produced two draws and two victories for Wales. We'll be talking about one of those matches later on.  But let's start with the year 2006, which is the last time the young Israel side faced their counterparts from Wales in the qualifiers for the Under-21 European Championships. The finals were slated for the summer of 2007 in Holland after UEFA decided to move up the tournament from an even year to an uneven year.  As a result of the increased pressure on the fixture schedule, the governing body also determined that for this tournament only the usual set of home and away fixtures would be abandoned in favour of one match each between the national teams of each group.  Then, as once again since last summer, Yuval Shpungin was a Maccabi Tel Aviv player and in 2006 also a star fullback for the national Under-21s, then coached by current Beitar Jerusalem boss Guy Levy. Wales were one of the teams in their group.

"It was a strange campaign, definitely different. We were in the same group as Wales and Turkey, but we didn't play home and away. And because there was only one encounter, this match against Wales, our opening match, became critical. We were first supposed to play the tie at home, but because there was a war on at the time, the game was moved to Holland to the stadium of RKC Waalwijk. There were no spectators at all, a very unpleasant experience for a football player at any stage of his career. The whole campaign came down to two games, so if you lost one you already failed to qualify".

"We had guys on the side like Tom Almadon, Dekel Keinan, Maor Melikson, Lior Rafaelov and Toto Tamuz, and those last three really performed against Wales. I remember the game very well. Toto put us ahead 1-0, and that stuck until Wales equalised in the second half. We regained the lead through Edan Sror, who poked in from the goalline, but then the Welsh drew level again. The suspense lasted until the 79^th minute, when Rafaelov put us ahead 3-2 to win the match. Two weeks later we went to Izmir to play away against Turkey and after a tough game we managed to hold them to a goalless draw, which sent us to the play-offs to face France and on to our first ever appearance at the finals in Holland. Only afterwards did we understand how important that first match against Wales was. But the Welsh side we're facing on Saturday is a different kettle of fish altogether. There are only three players from then on the national side now. Two of them are the goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey and the defender Chris Gunter, who I don't really remember".

Another Maccabi man with ties to the Welsh national team is current Maccabi Youth Division football director Nir Levin. He was in the Israeli national team alonfside legends like Ronnie Rosenthal, current Ashdod boss Nir Klinger, Nir Alon and many others. He shared some of his memories with the official Maccabi website: "It was a friendly and we were playing in the National Stadium in Ramat Gan. I remember it was a real goalfest, not frantic mind you but with a lot of twists and turns. We scored from two set pieces, one of them I'm sure was Nir Alon. One of the reasons I remember the match so well is because of (current Stoke City boss) Mark Hughes, who was their great star at the time. As a player I really admired Hughes. He was a great player whose watchwords were hard work, determination and pressure on the opponent. He was a real warrior, fought for every ball and never gave up on a match. And the proof of that character, and the character of the whole side, was that they came back twice from a goal down. They were very hard to beat".

As for Israel's prospects tomorrow night, Levin is cautiously optimistic: "I really hope we'll get a good result, but the Welsh are really tough opponents. People sometimes forget that it's not just Gareth Bale. They also have a lot of Premier League stars like Aaron Ramsey and Joe Allen, who are going to make it very tough on us indeed".  

Ahead of Israel's qualifier against Wales the national team have stepped up their preparations, and with them five Maccabi players. Before the encounter, Sheran Yeini and Eytan Tibi spoke about the mood in the squad, their aspirations and the pros of having five team-mates with them

This weekend every football fan in Israel will put aside her or his club shirt and scarf and unite behind the Israel national team. After winning their first three Euro 2016 qualifiers against Andorra, Cyprus and Bosnia, the Israeli national side face two extraordinary challenges in the space of four days when two of Europe's foremost national sides, Wales and Belgium, arrive in Israel for their first qualifying encounters with the hosting national team. Maccabi Tel Aviv will be sending no less than five of their most gifted players – captain Sheran Yeini, defenders Eytan Tibi and Omri Ben Harush, winger Tal Ben Chaim and midfielder Eran Zahavi – to join the squad for these two all-important matches, starting Saturday against Wales followed on Tuesday by Belgium.

For the five Maccabi players these are busy times, with both league and international duties reaching a peak at more or less the same time. Sheran Yeini is sanguine: "Last summer we were with the national team for a tour in the US to give a financial boost to the Israeli Football Association, and this year we'll be having a match after the end of the season too. Of course it makes life more difficult but the club understand the problem and make our schedules as easy as possible".

Eytan Tibi, who is expected to open in the Israel back four, also spoke about domestic versus national duty, but also about imagining what might be the next step in the national team's campaign: "We've got two really important matches ahead of us, and not just for the players but for the country as a whole. Of course it's an advantage to have your club team-mates on the squad. We know one another very well and that can be a great help to us and the whole team. You can see the advantage both in the team talks before the game and during the game itself. We understand one another and cover for each other as well. The whole national squad are winners, not just the Maccabi players, and I hope we'll be proving that out on the pitch. There isn't a player in Israel who wouldn't want to be on the national side, especially under these circumstances with us topping our group. That's not something you take for granted and we want to be there to help the team progress". 

Maccabi's traditional showcase match between the training staff and the club's Platinum Club members ended in a 4-1 victory for the coaches

At a festive event for Maccabi Tel Aviv's Platinum Club members, the team's coaching staff tonight gathered to play a showcase match against the club's honoured guests at the Kiryat Shalom training ground. Held for the first time last season, the match is fast becoming a club tradition and afforded an opportunity to Maccabi's loyal Platinum Club members to rub shoulders with the team's professional staff. Both before and after the match the members received the VIP treatment at the ground, joined by current members of the first-team squad, among them Eden Ben Basat, Gal Alberman, Nikola Mitrovic and Carlos Garcia.

At last year's event, then head coach Paulo Sousa and his staff registered a resounding victory over their Platinum Club opponents, headed by first-team manager and former Maccabi star Benny Tabak, who once again was charged with briefing the Platinum Club members turned footballers. Dressed in cleats and official Maccabi kit, including socks, shorts and shirts, this year's Platinum squad attempted to make amends for last season's defeat. Across the pitch were the no less impressive coaching staff squad, under the able leadership of assistant coach Kobi Alfasi and manned by such key figures as head coach Pako Ayestaran, goalkeeping coach Shura Uvarov and many others.

After the players were introduced by renowned Bloomfield Stadium announcer Shay Sidi, the match got underway but quickly took an unexpected turn when a surprise substitute came on for the coaching staff, none other than Maccabi Tel Aviv's celebrated all-time leading goalscorer Avi Nimni! The match got off to a furious start as Maccabi CEO Martin Bain scored the first goal with an assist from the club's head scout Amir Turjeman. Moments later this fruitful partnership continued with the CEO now providing for former striker Turjeman, who scored with a half scissor kick reminiscent of his illustrious playing days. The coaching staff's third goal was scored by club spokesperson Ofer Ronen after a spectacular personal effort, followed by a fourth by Maccabi's legendary captain Avi Nimni. Danny Fildes scored the Platimun Club's consolation goal close to the end after beating former Maccabi star goalkeeper Shura Uvarov.

After last night's big win against Maccabi Haifa, team captain Sheran Yeini, head coach Pako Ayestaran and centre half Eytan Tibi were all keen to praise the team's display. And how about that goal from Zahavi!

Last night at Bloomfield Stadium Maccabi Tel Aviv enjoyed one of the finest moments of the season so far, as a cracker of a goal a minute from time by star midfielder Eran Zahavi handed them a 2-1 victory over long-standing rivals Maccabi Haifa in the first of ten play-off matches. The team performed brilliantly throughout the match and dominated their opponents completely, while the win preserves Maccabi's five-point lead at the top of the Israeli Premier League table ahead of their match against title rivals Hapoel Beer Sheva, scheduled for after the international break.

After the match, and ahead of this critical run-in phase of the season, team captain Sheran Yeini shared his feelings with the official Maccabi website crew: "This was a very important match. We got off to a great start and controlled the match. Just a pity we let them pull one back, but we got a hold of the game again and that goal at the end, that's Eran Zahavi head and shoulders above the rest. He's a true winner and makes the difference in so many games". 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dmvkMJa8lI

Yeini also spoke about the team's ambition to win every match: "I think that the developments in the past few years, here at the club and in the team, have produced a kind of tailwind, that even when we're trailing we do everything to win the game under any circumstances. It's good for the club because it makes our play much more intensive. We take one game at a time. Now we'll take a short break for the European qualifiers and afterwards we'll be focused only on the match against Hapoel Beer Sheva".

Another person with reason to be pleased after last night's performance was, of course, head coach Pako Ayestaran: "Today we had to confirm again that we were the best team and we have shown that maybe it has been one of the best performances you have seen in any game in Israel. But we have to be able to keep going and not think that something has been achieved because there are still nine games to go and everything can happen". Asked to describe his feelings when he saw Eran Zahavi's shot go into the net the Spaniard replied: "Relief, especially because I think we deserved to win. I would have been sorry about the players because the effort they made and the level of football they played today deserved more reward than a draw. I said the future depends on what we do in the present. I think today they've shown I was right. I said to them 'I would like you to confirm that I was right and that you are the players that I really think you are' and that's what they've shown today".

As for the evening's first goalscorer, Nigerian midfielder Nosa Igiebor, Pako said: "I'm pleased for him because as you know I think from the beginning I really knew he was a player who could add a lot to the team, to the squad and to the club. I insisted and I insisted and I kept my idea and I think he's showing that he's a great player". And the second? "It's a gift for Maccabi to have a player like Eran Zahavi and I hope Maccabi will be able to keep him for many years because if the club want to make one step forward, for these kinds of players you have to make an effort to keep them in the club. I think loyalty is something you have to pay for. He injects so much character into the team, not only during the games, on a daily basis as well and that is more important than even the game".

The coach was also asked if he had a word for the Maccabi players headed for international duties in this weekend's Euro 2016 qualifiers against Wales and Belgium: "I think they've got a great opportunity to get something that has not been achieved for many years and I think when you've got such a good opportunity you have to grab it with both hands".

Eran Zahavi, the source of such great joy at Bloomfield last night, also had a word to say about the win and, of course, his role in it: "The goal was special, no doubt about that. But the match belonged to us from the very start, we deserved to win it. The fact that the winner came in the last minute makes it that much more spectacular, certainly. There are times like that, you know from the minute your foot connects with the ball it's going in. But the credit for the win goes to the whole team. It's also important that we got our lead in the table back to five points but let's not go overboard, we still have Beer Sheva next time out. But first the European qualifiers".

Veteran centre half Eytan Tibi was also keen to get in a word, about the match itself and about how Zahavi's goal at the end compared with other goals that might have given the league championship to Maccabi in the past two years: "The game was brilliant, it was all us. They had one chance and scored but no question about who deserved to win. As for Eran's goal at the end, I've seen some great ones in the past two years and before that too, but there are too many more games to play to tell right now whether this one will settle the title. I certainly hope so".   

A new half-time feature at Maccabi's home play-off games: The NIVEA MEN challenge. And the first winner is Doron Zilbershporen!

With yesterday's 2-1 home win against Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Tel Aviv surmounted their first play-off challenge of the 2014/15 season. But that was not the only debut challenge of the evening, not by a long shot! Last night at Bloomfield Stadium also saw the premiere of another challenge, the NIVEA MEN challenge, a competition that will be offering prizes to Maccabi fans at all of Maccabi Tel Aviv's home play-off games. At every half time, two season ticket holders will be invited to get out on the pitch and demonstrate their footballing prowess. The experience will be further enhanced by the participants being presented with official Maccabi team shirts with the number of their choice and their names printed on the back, which they will proudly wear during the competition itself. And the contestant showing the greatest skill by winning the evening's competition will be rewarded with a special NIVEA MEN gift package.

The contestants at the first NIVEA MEN half-time challenge were Doron Zilbershporen, season ticket holder at gate 7, and Liron Bahash season ticket holder at gate 8. And the challenge: Scoring the most goals out of three tries from the half-way line. And the winner was Doron Zilbershporen, who succeeded in placing one of his three tries into the open net. Congratulations Doron!

The NIVEA MEN half-time challenge will continue at all forthcoming Maccabi home play-off games. If you'd like to participate, just go to the official Maccabi Tel Aviv Facebook page and keep an eye out for registration details for the very next NIVEA MEN half-time challenge.