Open Day for Keepers at the Youth Academy

The Youth Department held a special day at Kiryat Shalom as a special Open Day for goalkeepers was on tap for shot stoppers from throughout the country. Even Shura Uvarov paid a visit

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department held a special Open Day for goalkeepers at the Kiryat Shalom Training Facility. Special training sessions for the club’s keepers were held this morning which was followed by a open training sessions for shot stoppers from across the country. Israel Ainy, the head of the Youth Academy’s Goalkeeper Department was in charge of the activities which included a special staff of coaches that helped keep the quality, professionalism and enjoyment of the day. In addition, Shura Uvarov, the First Team’s Goalkeeping Coach was on hand to give out tips to the budding keepers.

At 08:30, the U13-U17 keepers held a training session as the staff split them up by age for special attention. At 10:00 the younger ages held a session that was also split up by age as well. It’s also important to note that the sessions were held using the club’s philosophy.

The second part of the day was open for young goalkeepers that are not part of the Youth Department. Roughly 40 keepers between the ages of 8-16 descended upon the Kiryat Shalom Training Facility as the professional staff split them up by age and skill level. Should a keeper have impressed the staff, the club will be in contact with them. This amazing day was a fantastic opportunity for youngsters from around the country to get a taste of the values of Maccabi Tel Aviv.

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department held a special Open Day for ...

Youth Department Clubs participate in Co-Existence Tournament

This past Thursday the U12 and U11 Youth Department clubs took part in a special program at Ma’alot-Tarshiha where Jews and Arabs used football as a tool to bridge the gap between the people. The children enjoyed a presentation about co-existence and played a tournament which combined the various squads

Clubs from the Youth Department took part in a special program that combined the Arab and Jewish communities. The Under-12 & Under-11 teams visited Ma’alot-Tarshiha and participated in a football tournament that combined the various teams as well as a presentation about co-existence.

Maccabi Tel Aviv together with Hapoel Tarshiha, Yehuda Edri Hussan and Macabi Sektzia Ma’alot Tarshiha were the 4 clubs involved in the activity which represented teams that were made up of Arabs, Jews and some were a combination of both. The participants listened intently about the history of the city of Ma’alot Tarshiha, how Jews and Arabs live together, the present and future plans.

Following the presentation, the annual tournament in memory of Yehuda Edri z”l took place with the 4 teams under the auspices of the city as the players enjoyed learning about the values of co-existence and teamwork.

Clubs from the Youth Department took part in a special program that ...

Yellow & Blue Saturday Youth Department Results December 16, 2017

The Under-17 side scored 14 goals, the U16’s picked up a point in a goalless draw at Ramat Hasharon and the Under-15 North squad made a dramatic comeback. It’s all inside

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv 14-0 Hapoel “Ben Zion” Haifa
The club’s Under-17 club defeated the Carmel Reds on Matchday 10 by a score of 14-0. Goal scorers included: Gil Ben Shalosh x4, Rave Assayag x2, Shai Balahssan x2, Tal Yegudayev x2, Bar Cohen x2, Ido Sahar x2. Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon summed up the contest: “This was the type of match that a coach always dreams about. We attacked, pressed high extremely well and we had plenty of chances thanks to the hard work we did in training and the prize were the goals we scored as a team which were quality strikes. We began strong and aggressively while taking advantage of our opportunities. We took control by the 10’ and we were able to maintain our pace of play throughout, which doesn’t always happen and that was a key part of the match in my opinion. I’ve got to hand it to the players who made sure to have a great Shabbat, but in football you can only be happy for a few hours and then you’re at it again, looking at the next challenge and that’s a win at Kfar Saba in our next match.”

Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon 0:0 Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv
Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” faced the club from the Sharon on Matchday 11 in league action. The contest ended in a goalless draw as the clubs split the points. Assistant coach Jeffrey Yishai spoke about the match: “We improved tremendously on the defensive end and we worked all week on our head game. Our coverage was good and we battled well for the first ball. We played slowly on the attack and we didn’t provide enough balls from the wings. We went to the middle too many times instead of taking advantage of our play from the sides. We improved a bit in the second half but our play in the corners and crosses weren’t good and we didn’t have enough chances.”

Ironi Modiin 3:3 Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 South side was back in action after a week off and drew 3:3 at Modiin, but maintained first place on the table. Elad Kaplan, Ohad Mizrahi and Anar Ushmadi scored for the young Yellow & Blue. Head coach Ori David said following the match: “We weren’t organized and aggressive enough defensively and we gave us three goals after we were leading three times. We’ll have to see how we fare down the road and on Wednesday we will look to take the next step in Cup play.”

Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv 3:2 Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon
After scoring 12 goals last Matchday, the U15 North squad continued their winning ways against the club from the Sharon as Amir Arieli x2 and Yonatan Paz scored for Maccabi “Ilan”. Asaf Heber, the Head Coach summed up the clash: “We prepared for a match against a tight knit opponent who would clog the midfield and play the long ball. We gave up an early goal due to an unforced error and we missed time after time until we drew even in the 78’. Then there was plenty of drama on the pitch as we gave up another goal but then scored a pair to win the match in the final minutes. I’m proud of the players who didn’t take their foot off the gas until the final whistle.”

Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, Tuesday December 19th at 17:00, Grundman Stadium
After scoring five goals last Matchday against Ashkelon, the U19 side will look to keep up their positive momentum at the Sharon club on Matchday 11 of the Israel Youth Premier League Ligat Ha’Al. The young Yellow & Blue currently sit in 6th place with two wins in a row while Ramat Hasharon are in 12th and are winless in their last 3 matches.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv 14-0 Hapoel “Ben Zion” Haifa The club’s Under-17 club ...

Just like the best players in the world: Arjen Robben Episode 6

The new Youth Department project is continuing to gain momentum. Episode 6 of the video series presents a new technical exercise which is taught at the club’s Academy. Watch the next special movement

Just like the best players in the world: The Brand New Youth Department Project

Just like the best players in the world: The Brand ...

Youth Department Action Saturday December 16, 2017

The Under-17 squad host Hapoel Haifa, the U16’s head to Ramat Hasharon, Maccabi “Shachar” will also play there on Tuesday, plus all of the other youth action is inside

Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv (Tuesday December 19, location TBA)
After a fiver against Ashkelon last Matchday, the Under-19 side will look to keep up their positive momentum when they play at Ramat Hasharon on Matchday 11 of the Israel Youth Premier League Ligat Ha’Al. The young Yellow & Blue are in 6th place after two wins in a row while the hosts sit in 12th place and are winless in three straight.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Haifa “Ben Zion”, 11:00 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (Under-17)
The U17 squad will host the Reds from the Carmel on Matchday 10 as Eliezer Ben Aharon’s club sit atop the table in first place without a loss. Haifa are in 12th place and have won only two matches this season.

Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 08:30 Ramat Hasharon Synthetic (U16)
Maccabi “Eli Fuchs”, the club’s Under-16 team are in 6th place with six league wins as they head to Ramat Hasharon for a Matchday 11 date against the 11th place side who sport 3 victories.

Ironi Modiin – Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv, 14:00 Modiin (U15 South)
After a one week break the Under-15 South side is back in action with an away contest on Matchday 9 against the 11th place Modiin team who are currently in 11th place with one league win. Ori David’s squad are in first place and are undefeated.

Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon, 09:00 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (U15 North)
After finding the back of the goal 12 times last week, the Under-15 North club will look to keep up their winning ways against 10th place Ramat Hasharon who have lost two in a row on Matchday 9. The young Yellow & Blue are in third place just 3-points off the top of the table.

Hapoel Nir Ramat Hasharon – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv (Tuesday December 19, ...

Holiday of the Maccabis: Hanukkah Candle Lighting for the 2nd night

The Club’s Youth Department held a celebratory candle lighting ceremony at Kiryat Shalom. The Department Manger Guy Zuckerman hosted the evening as CEO Ben Mansford along with senior staff members and Youth Department personnel were all in attendance

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department held a celebratory Hanukkah candle lighting ceremony hosted by Department Manager Guy Zukerman at the Kiryat Shalom Training Facility. This is an annual tradition that is put together by the Youth Department personnel each and every season.

The guests were treated to doughnuts and other Hanukkah delights. The Club CEO Ben Mansford, First Team Head Coach Jordi Cruyff, along with other senior staff members including Steve McClaren, Juan Torrijo, Dani Poyatos and Yoav Ziv attended the event. Patrick van Leeuwen the Club’s Performance Director also enjoyed the special evening together with the other Youth Department coaches and staff members.

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department held a celebratory Hanukkah candle lighting ...

The man behind the Goalkeepers: Get to know Israel Ainy

Just ahead of the Goalkeeper’s Open Day that will be held on December 18th at Kiryat Shalom, let’s get to know the man behind the Goalkeeper Department at the Youth Academy

On December 18th the Maccabi Tel Aviv Academy will hold open an training day for goalkeepers from throughout the country. Throughout the day there will be specific training for keepers by age group according to the philosophy of the Maccabi Academy. There will also be various goalkeeper competitions and prizes for the most outstanding keepers. The Youth Department will see which keepers will impress and those who do will be invited for trials with the various teams in the Academy.

Israel Ainy, the Head of the Goalkeeper Department at the Academy is handling the Open Day and further information can be found by CLICKING HERE

Ainy is the Head of the Goalkeeper Department at the Youth Academy as well as at both the North and South facilities. He is also the goalkeeping coach for the Under-19 club and the Under-13 squad.

There are 4 goalkeeper coaches in the Youth Department and they hold training sessions 6 days a week. Ainy’s main responsibility is to assimilate his goalkeeping philosophy and adapt it to the Academy’s philosophy with the ultimate goal of being able to help train and produce top level keepers for the First Team.

Israel is also responsible for establishing, organizing and managing goalkeeper training in Israel. He was part of the goalkeepers’ camp at the Wingate Institute with Frans Hoek, who was the goalkeeper coach at Ajax Amsterdam, FC Barcelona, ​​Bayern Munich and both the Holland and Poland National Teams. Ainy is also responsible for the training of dozens of goalkeepers in Israel. He has taken an UEFA coaching course and has trained in the Netherlands and Israel.

Nature of the position:
As the Head of the Goalkeeper Department at the Maccabi Tel Aviv Football Academy, I’m responsible for coaching and supervising the goalkeeper training that is in accordance with the Academy training philosophy.
Build training programs.
Train and the supervise goalkeeper training.
Transfer information between team coaches and goalkeeper coaches.
Monitor the development of the Academy goalkeepers (mental, technical, tactical and physical).
Analyze both training sessions and matches by with the help of the Academy analysts.
Discover potential goalkeepers (ages 6-19).

Ainy was asked why children shy away from being goalkeepers: “The role of the goalkeeper demands strong mental skills, there could be more risk for injury and disappointments as well. So children prefer to touch the ball more, pass, assist and score. I personally feel that there is a change in this trend in terms of children who want to become goalkeepers and that is due to the fact that they are watching more matches on TV and they want to idolize some of the top goalkeepers in the world.”

Tips for goalkeepers who are at the beginning of their careers: “I recommend attending the Maccabi Tel Aviv Football Club Academy, where young goalkeepers will receive the highest professional attention and at top levels. The training conditions are excellent at the leading football club in Israel.”

On December 18th the Maccabi Tel Aviv Academy will hold open an ...

Maccabi Youth Department Delegation visits Valencia

The Youth Department Manager along with a pair of coaches took part in a special program at the Spanish club. The staff were able to watch the First Team’s training session and spent a day with the club’s youth department

A delegation of Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department staff, including coaches Ben Kaplan and Idan Kazinitz along with Youth Department Manager Guy Zukerman visited Valencia last week and spent a number of days with one of the top Spanish La Liga clubs. On Sunday, the Yellow & Blue representatives were able to watch Valencia’s First Team training session and tour the training facility while also taking part in an inservice continuing education session with the club’s youth department.

The delegation also watched the U21 & U19 training sessions together with Luis Vicente Mateo, the Professional Director of the Valencia Youth Department. During that time, Mateo spoke about how to work with the younger age groups (6-21) and discussed the club’s magnificent training facility. The special visit was thanks to Juan Torrijo, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Head Fitness Coach who worked with the Spanish club for 16 years.

A delegation of Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department staff, including coaches Ben ...

Six Maccabi Youth Department players called up for Israel National Team Duty

The Under-18 Israel National Team Head Coach Alon Hazan called up 20 players for the upcoming Winter Tournament. Six of them are from the Club’s Youth Department. The team will face Serbia and Germany

Six representatives from the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department were called up for the U18 Israel National Team. Head Coach Alon Hazan will have 20 players at his disposal for matches against Serbia and Germany.

The six Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department Players are:
Daniel Peretz, Amit Glazer, Tomer Mahluf, Alon Shtrozberg, Eden Kartzev and Mufleh Shalata.

The National Team will play against Serbia on Monday at the Shefayim Israel National Team Center and the next day Germany will play Serbia there as well at 18:30. On Thursday Israel will meet Germany at the Ramat Gan Stadium at 15:00.

Six representatives from the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department were called up ...

Yellow & Blue Youth Department Results December 9, 2017

The Under-19 side continued it’s fine play, the Under-17’s drew at Beer Sheva, the U16 squad defeated Hapoel Petah Tikva while both Under-15 teams had big wins

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 5:1 Hapoel Ashkelon
Following last week’s win over Hapoel Beer Sheva, the Under-19 club hosted Ashkelon and picked up the victory on Matchday 10 over their Southern rivals. The goals were scored by William Agada, Eylon Almog x2, Prince Thomas and Mufleh Shalata. For the full match report CLICK HERE.

Hapoel Beer Sheva 2:2 Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv
The club’s Under-17 squad played away at Beer Sheva on Matchday 9 and took home a point that saw them remain in first place. Rave Assayag and Bar Cohen found the back of the goal for the young Yellow & Blue. Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon summed up the contest: “It was a very aggressive match and we led twice while bringing to the table some of the things that we prepared. The goals we gave up came on uncharacteristic errors and they are things that can happen. There were a lot of good things that I saw, but I also identified some issues with a number of players who were unable to get back to themselves after a mistake or a poor match. But that’s part of our role, to give the players the tools to be able to handle situations that don’t always go according to plan. Even though we drew, we were able to increase our lead at the top of the table to 4 points from the second place club. We will work on improving, organizing and fixing our play up as we move forward and look to be better tomorrow.”

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv 2:1 Hapoel Petah Tikva “Emanuel Ofir”
After a victory last Matchday, the Under-16 side faced Petah Tikva on Matchday 10. The Yellow & Blue were able to take the 3 points thanks to goals by Tal Torjman and Yishay Bozorgi. Head Coach Raymond Atteveld looked back at the match: “We ended the day with a 2:1 victory. Although we won, we made our lives difficult. When the opponent refuses to play attacking football and their main goal is to slow down the pace of the match and defend, we should take control and increase the pace of the game. But during the match itself it wasn’t that simple. In order to win and to break down their bunker we had to move the ball quickly, change direction from the wings and attempt to put the balls over the defenders. After opening up the game, we needed to make sure we were in the correct position to score. We were able to get a number of chances, but we couldn’t break through because we weren’t in the right spots. We have to learn to play better as a team from this match. As they say, you learn more from the poor matches. We have a long way ahead of us, but it will be our way.”

Maccabi Yavne “Tzav Pius” 0:7 Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 South squad continued picking up points and moved into first place on Matchday 8. Elad Kaplan scored a Hattrick, Oskar Glok put home a brace while Orel Azarzar and Anar Ushmadi also found the back of the goal. Head Coach Ori David: “This was an important victory over Yavne. We were very good for long periods of time . We scored some nice goals and I really enjoyed watching the guys play.”

Maccabi Barkai 0:12 Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv
Following last week’s win over Maccabi Haifa, the Under-15 North club headed to Kibbutz Barkai on Matchday 8 as the young Yellow & Blue scored 12 goals while keeping a clean sheet. Aviv Palas x2, Yonatan Paz x2, Omer Senior x2, Rani Noff, Guy Noff, Roie Shiron, Camil Jabra, Omer Rozio and Ben Lineker all scored. Head Coach Asaf Heber: “We played a weak opponent. It was important that we had specific objectives for this match and I’m happy that the players were able to complete them extremely well.”

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 5:1 Hapoel Ashkelon Following last week’s win over Hapoel ...