Emir Sahiti: “There’s a lot of quality in our team. I'm happy to be here”

Youth team face Maccabi Haifa in “Classico”

The youth and junior teams are action on Saturday. MTA U19 team will face the league leaders Maccabi Haifa the centre of attention. U17 are away to Ra'anana, U16 host Bnei Yehuda and U15 play Katamon

Youth league action returns on Saturday after a three-week layoff and the with a clash against “Classico” rivals Maccabi Haifa in the tenth round of action in Ness Ziona, Maccabi’s home ground, kickoff at noon.

Four consecutive wins has Maccabi going into the match in buoyant mood and third in the standings, six points off the pace, but it won’t be easy against league leaders Haifa, who have won eight and drawn once this season.

U17, Maccabi Tel Aviv “Oded” will play away at Ra’anana kickoff at 08:30 at the northern park in Ra’anana in the ninth round of action. Maccabi are second in the standings in what is expected to be a tight clash against the hosts, who are in fourth place and are the only unbeaten team in the division.

U16, Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” host Bnei Yehuda at Kiryat Shalom in the 13th round of action. Maccabi lead the division and have won their last six matches, while Bnei Yehuda are in seventh place in the league.

U15, Maccabi “Eldad” host Hapoel Katamon Jerusalem at 08:30 on the synthetic pitch at Kiryat Shalom in the eighth round. Maccabi are fourth in the division, while Katamon are in 13th position with only one win to their name so far.

Youth league action returns on Saturday after a three-week layoff ...

Ben Aharon: “confident in youth team’s ability”

Maccabi Tel Aviv youth team coach Eliezer Ben Aharon talks about his team's prospects and his expectations ahead of the crucial clash on Saturday against leaders Maccabi Haifa

Youth league action returns on Saturday after a three-week layoff and the stakes couldn’t be higher with a clash against “Classico” rivals Maccabi Haifa in the tenth round of action to be hosted at Ness Ziona.

Four consecutive wins has Maccabi going into the match in buoyant mood and in third place in the standings six points off the pace, but it won’t be easy against league leaders Haifa, who have won eight and drawn once this season.

“Matches against Haifa are always interesting, this is the classic rivalry among the youth teams and over the years there has been healthy competition between the clubs through all age groups,” Ben Aharon told us.

“Haifa started the league well and we didn’t, though we have improved more recently and we are in the ascendency,” he added.

Ben Aharon said that victory was definitely the aim on Saturday and he was confident in achieving it.

“We want to inflict a first defeat of the season on Maccabi Haifa and close the gap to three points, we believe in our ability and get the win,” Ben Aharon said.

Preparations for the game have been like against any other team and Haifa’s weak points are going to be the key to get the win, although with so much of the season still ahead, nothing is concluded at this early stage, said the coach.

Youth league action returns on Saturday after a three-week layoff ...

Football Network project gains momentum

Maccabi Tel Aviv's youth academy is continuing to work with other clubs across the country and impart its knowledge and philosophy in training youngsters

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s youth academy held a gathering on Monday for coaches and training staff from clubs throughout the country to share its approach and system in raising young players.

Representatives from Hapoel Hadera, Beitar Ramat Gan, FC Holon, Ramle SC, Beitar Tel Aviv-Bat Yam, Ironi Gedera and Ashkelon FC participated in the session led by Maccabi’s head of scouting, Ran Elias. The event was held under the auspices of Patrick Van Leeuwen, the head of the academy.

Leon Asraf, who heads the junior academy, began with a lecture which was followed by a model training session involving Maccabi’s U12 team. Goalkeeping, fitness and technique coaches among others were all on hand to discuss aspects of their work.

Elias later talked of the meeting with colleagues and discussed plans for continued
cooperation.

“This was our second gathering to display our project, and we hosted professionals from many clubs throughout the country. We will hold these meetings once every two months at the training facility at Kiryat Shalom. This time we dealt with the younger age groups and next time we will concentrate on the older players.”

Elias said that at a later stage, Maccabi coaches will visit partner advise on training methods. The project is intended to raise cooperation with smaller outfits throughout the country and increase cooperation and share knowledge and it is hoped that more clubs will join the partnership.

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s youth academy held a gathering on Monday ...

Girls’ team beat Ramat Hasharon 5-0

Maccabi Tel Aviv's girls' team scored their second win in their league by beating Ramat Hasharon at home. Female youth league gets under way at the weekend when Maccabi play Maccabi Beersheba

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s girls’ team on Monday registered an easy 5-0 win over the girls of Ramat Hasharon in their second league outing of the season and added to their victory in the first round of their league opening away win over Bnot Yehuda.

The female youth team will get their league campaign under way on Saturday when
they meet Maccabi Beersheba.

Players wishing to join the club should call Dana Nuessenbaum at 050-6300890.

The female academy is run according to a programme prepared by Patrick Van Leeuwen and the project is managed by Dana Nuessenbaum who oversees coaches and support staff working to train a new generation of players under the best possible conditions.

The academy is divided into three age groups according to year of birth: Youth (2001-05), Girls (2006-08) and Youngsters (2009-12).

Training will include three soccer sessions, physical fitness, video analysis, diet, mental coaching and medical assessment.

 

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s girls’ team on Monday registered an easy ...

Five Academy players called up for Euro qualifiers

Maccabi Tel Aviv's youth academy has five representatives among the national squad playing in the UEFA Under-17 Championship in Ireland

Five Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Academy players, Ariel Belson, Amit Kodman, Aner Oshmandi, Elad Kaplan and Dor Turjeman, are currently playing with the national team at the UEFA Under-17 Championship in Ireland.

Israel began the event with a 1-0 win over Montenegro in their group on Tuesday. They will face Andorra on Friday and conclude with a clash against hosts Ireland on Monday.

Five Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Academy players, Ariel Belson, Amit ...

Weekend juniors’ results

Maccabi Tel Aviv's youth team register a fourth win on the trot and beat Maccabi Petah Tikva in under-19 action while the U16 beat Maccabi Netanya 3-1 away while the U15 drew 2-2 with Maccabi Petah Tikva at home

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Shahar,” the club’s under-19 side, crushed Maccabi Petah Tikva 5-2 on Monday and notched their fourth win in a row in the youth league which has kept them in third place in the standings Click here for more details.

The boys’ U16 team, Maccabi Eli Fuchs, gained a sixth win in a row which kept them at the top of the standings after their 3-1 win at Maccabi Netanya in the 12th round of action as Oscar Gloch and Amit Tzur with two goals scored for the visitors. The team now has a three-week break.

The boys’ U15 team, Maccabi Eldad, drew 2-2 at home with Maccabi Petah Tikva in the seventh round of their division. Agam Hanoun scored both goals for Maccabi.

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Shahar,” the club’s under-19 side, crushed Maccabi ...

Confident Maccabi put 3 past Hapoel Haifa

Maccabi Tel Aviv roll on with another convincing performance and a tenth clean sheet thanks to goals by Yonatan Cohen (26), Dor Micha (54) and Itai Shechter (90). Eyal Golasa showed his class with two assists for the first two goals that cut through the Haifa defence

Maccabi Tel Aviv notched another convincing win in the TASE Premier League on Saturday and put three goals without reply past Hapoel Haifa.

Goals by Yonatan Cohen in the first half and by Dor Micha and Itai Shechter in the second half secured the points for the hosts, although there was never any doubt throughout who were the better of the two teams.

Maccabi started the first half strongly and looked as if they were ready to take the game to their opponents from the opening whistle but Haifa were not cowered and mounted a few attacks of their own. 

Probably more than in any other league fixture so far this season, Maccabi were also on the back foot early as Haifa stormed forward but poor finishing ensured that  Daniel Tenenbaum, who has now kept ten consecutive clean sheets since the start of the season, was never under threat.

Cohen broke the deadlock in the 26th minute when after a string of passes on the right of the area, Eyal Golasa found him in space and the in-form forward’s curling right-foot shot evaded Haifa goalkeeper Yasmin Boric’s fingertips and ended up on the far side of the net.

Early pressure in the second half, with Maccabi’s players controlling all the play, culminated in the second goal in the 54th minute after Micha latched onto another good Golasa pass from the left and he made no mistake and struck the ball firmly into the roof of the net from 10 metres out. 

Maccabi should have added a third in the 64th minute when referee Eli Hachmon awarded a penalty after a VAR check following a foul on Chico Ofoedu, but Cohen’s spot kick was well saved by Boric as he dived to his right to parry the ball.

Itai Schechter, who came on as substitute late in the game after Ofoedu went off injured, secured the result in injury time when he slotted the ball home after Maccabi’s forward line broke free of the Haifa defence and Atzili passed an easy ball to Shechter who was unmarked and had no pressure in slotting the ball into the net.

Maccabi Tel Aviv notched another convincing win in the TASE ...

U13 South named Pizza Prego Team of Month

Every month, Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Academy's heads will choose their outstanding team. In their inaugural pick this month, the under-13 team got the nod for the title sponsored by Pizza Prego

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s under-13 team from the southern section have been named the inaugural outstanding team of the month by the club’s Youth Academy, a prize sponsored by Pizza Prego.

Academy heads Patrick van Leeuwen and Guy Zuckerman picked the side that train at Kiryat Shalom and the boys celebrated with a meal sponsored by Pizza Prego on Thursday.

The U13 South are the first team to win this special prize, and each month Van Leeuwen and Zuckerman will pick their outstanding team for the period.

Results were not necessarily the main factor in making the choice, rather, the behaviour of the boys and their achievements off the field of play too.

“Since the beginning of the year we have been impressed by the way the boys have behaved and trained and by their demeanour when they arrive for training and when they leave at the end of their session,” Zuckerman said.

“These will be the criteria that we will use to determine our outstanding teams, whether at Kiryat Shalom or at our northern base at the university.”

Zuckerman added that “cooperation with Pizza Prego has been very fruitful from our perspective, and we are very pleased that we can reward the kids and give them a good feeling. It helps team bonding and shows commitment by both parties.”

U13S are coached by Tamir Tubul, his assistant is Tom Shalom and goalkeeping coach is Eliad Graf.

The team have registered three wins in their three league outings this season, a 2-0 away win over Maccabi Petah Tikva, a 7-0 home win over Ramat Hasharon and a 3-1 away win over Maccabi Beersheba. They also scored a whopping 9-1 win over Ironi Modiin in the State Cup.

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s under-13 team from the southern section have ...

Upcoming age group fixtures

Maccabi Tel Aviv's youth team will be in action on Monday against Maccabi Petah Tikva while the U16 and 15 sides respectively play away in Netanya and at home against Maccabi Petah Tikva

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Shahar,” the club’s under-19 youth side, will be hosted by Maccabi Petah Tikva on Monday at 14:30 at the Petah Tikva ground in the ninth round of action because the home team has a fixture on Saturday in the youth champions league. Eliezer Ben Aharon’s charges will go into the clash in third place in their division after three wins on the trot, while Petah Tikva have won only once in their last five league outings.

Among the juniors, Maccabi Tel Aviv “Oded,”  the A side, are on an international break because the national junior side are playing in the European junior qualifying competition.

Maccabi Netanya will host Maccabi Tel Aviv “Eli Fuchs,” u16 team, at the Netanya Shapira ground on Saturday at 11:15. The boys lead their division after five straight wins, while Netanya are in seventh place in the league with six victories overall.

The U15 team, Maccabi “Eldad” host Maccabi Petah Tikva at 08:30 on the synthetic surface at Kiryat Shalom. Maccabi are in fourth place in the division after winning their last two matches, while Petah Tikva are in second place.

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Shahar,” the club’s under-19 youth side, will be hosted ...

Youth academy teams celebrate wins

Maccabi Tel Aviv's leading youth and junior teams achieved convincing results in their weekend fixtures at Kiryat Shalom

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s leading youth and junior teams achieved convincing results in their weekend fixtures at Kiryat Shalom. The youth side registered an important win over Ramat Hasharon while the junior A team beat Bnei Yehuda and the junior B team also beat their Ramat Hasharon counterparts

Maccabi “Shahar” Tel Aviv 3, Hapoel “Nir Ramat Hasharon 0– The youth team registered an important and clear-cut home victory over their opponents in the eighth round of the league which was played at Kiryat Shalom because the usual home venue at Ness Ziona was undergoing winter re-seeding. Eliezer Ben Aharon’s charges now have three consecutive wins under their belts and lie in third place in the standings, six points behind pacesetters Maccabi Haifa. Parfait Guiagon, Shaked Navon and Ronen Hanchis scored Maccabi’s goals.

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Oded” 3, Bnei Yehuda 0– A David Turgeman hat trick secured the points for Uri David’s high flyers who now have six wins after eight rounds of play.

Maccabi Tel Aviv “Eli Fuchs” 6, Hapoel “Nir” Ramat Hasharon 0– The junior B team thrashed their opponents and lead their division after 11 rounds of play as Yakir Silberman scored a hat trick, Niv Huber struck twice and Lior Aloni added another.

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s leading youth and junior teams achieved convincing results in ...