UEL: Maccabi beaten 3-0 by Bologna

Cruyff takes part in the Training Principles in Modern Football Course

The Sports Director took part in the 8th meeting of the Club’s Sports Science Department and the Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports course

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Sports Science Department and the Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports are continuing their successful Training Principles in Modern Football course. The course which includes 60 academic hours over 12 meetings takes place at the Kiryat Shalom Training Facility. Lecturers include Dr. Antonio Dello Iacono, Course Coordinator, the Youth Department’s Performance Director Patrick van Leeuwen, Raymond Atteveld and other coaches from the department.

This past week, the eighth meeting of the course took place. The first part of the lecture discussed goalkeeper training sessions and the youth department’s new philosophy concerning the subject. During the next portion of the class, Dr. Antonio Dello Iacono spoke about “Football Fitness” and explained how long-term training can be planned with a methodology based on scientific principles.

Jordi Cruyff, the Club’s Sports Director was the final speaker of the day and for the most part took a variety of questions in an open forum. The students asked about his management principles and philosophy such as changing Club policy or the youth department to professional elements including the principles of choosing a coach, the method and style of play and finding players that are available in the market to fit the needs of the club. Cruyff explained that the experience he gained by once being a player helps him tremendously in his current role especially when it comes to making changes.

The Maccabi Tel Aviv Sports Science Department and the Wingate Institute for ...

“It’s not easy to make such big changes after doing things a certain way for so long”

After wrapping up the league title, Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon spoke about what he experienced over the season while working with the youth department's new professional staff

This past Saturday, Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, the Under-17 side won the league championship title and this coming Wednesday, the young Yellow & Blue will look to take home the double when they face Maccabi Haifa for the State Cup. After a fantastic season, we sat down with Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon who spoke about the campaign that was and his experience working with the new professional staff under Performance Director Patrick van Leeuwen.

How did you arrive at Maccabi?
“That’s an interesting story. I went to watch a final which was a Under-17 Derby and I was looking at the coaches on the sidelines and I thought to myself that I wanted to be in that exact same spot. There was an Israel Football Association professional course that began a few months later and I met Nir Levin, the professional director of the youth department at the time and I asked him a number of questions. I also then began going to watch the training sessions at Kiryat Shalom and I decided that I had to find my way into the system. Over the next little while, I built a training regimen for players and I presented it to Nir who liked it and asked me if I would run the Football School. I stayed in that role for six years and then went on to coach the Under-16 club and then after one season in that position I moved up to the Under-17 side.”

Summing up the season so far:
“You can really see how the team jelled together and improved over the course of the season. Increasing the work rate, learning new things to go along with the responsibility and the will to succeed was the way we were able to record the good results that we have had up to now.”

Ben Aharon continued:
“Personally, it was a very challenging and difficult season. It’s not easy to make such big changes after doing things a certain way for so long. Patrick van Leeuwen came in at the beginning of the season and demanded that we forget everything that we knew and begin learning football the way that he believes in. I began to learn, change and move on to a brand new path that was also very organized with the new staff. I know that my goal as a member of the Maccabi youth department is to reach the same goals that we have set as a club.”
Working under a new youth department director:
“The work is different, challenging and interesting. Everyone in the department trains the same way, plays the same style, works by the training manual and participates in presentations and lectures that help enrich us. We also work with the latest technology including GPS and the C Sharp program. But what really makes the department unique is that we are all equal, from the Under-19 coach to the coaches in the football schools. There are no short cuts or cutting corners but there is a set way and there is patience to learn and to teach. The training sessions take place on a full pitch (that wasn’t the case beforehand), the staff is composed of 4 professionals, a coach, assistant coach, goalkeeping coach, fitness coach in addition to a roving psychologist that goes from team to team.”

Influence on the club:
“My ability to influence comes from the belief in the new system. I believed right away that if I wanted my players to understand and buy into the new way of training, that I myself had to believe in them, learn all about them and then enforce them. My experience with youth also helped in this process.”

Feeling a change and improvement within the team:
“Over the course of the season there were times where I felt that the team was moving forward and improving and then there were times when we went through a tough patch. From my experiences the season is a process and there are times when you slow down but the ultimate goal is to always bring the club back to the top, to a point which was even better than the last. During the campaign, I felt that the team had faith and belief all the way through and that could also be seen in the victories that we recorded in the last few minutes of a match. Some will say that it was luck, I say that it was because of hard work. The Championship is the goal by perseverance and dedication for a full season.”
Players moving up to the Under-19 side next season:
“At the start of the season I had a goal to have at least 10 players advance to the Under-19 squad. I still believe that this is a possibility and I hope that it occurs. Of course, the decision is made by the performances over the course of the season and future potential. The final decisions are made by a number of professionals and coaches.”

Stars of the season:
“To begin with I have to commend my assistant coach Leon Asraf, I believe that I am very lucky that he is with me and I couldn’t have asked for a better assistant. I also want to point out the quality people and large staff that we have including Guy Nachshon, fitness coach Gal, along with Ilan and Antonio who always supported me. In reference to the players it’s difficult to pick the best ones because the strength of the team comes from being exactly that, a team. However, Yoav made a nice leap forward after playing with the Under-15 side last season and worked very hard. Keeper Daniel Peretz also did nicely and has represented the National Team. In my opinion, every player has improved themselves.”

Specific match that helped the club move forward:
“I think it would be the home win over Maccabi Haifa. Last season when I coached the Under-16 side we lost to Haifa twice and I saw the player’s faces after the games themselves. I told them that if they continue to work hard the results will come. A year went by and we were able to defeat them twice this season and we have one victory left to complete the picture, the State Cup Final on Wednesday.”

Plans for ten years down the road:
“I don’t have the desire to be a first team coach. I’m interested in being a coach that teaches young coaches how to develop players at Maccabi. I want to be the best coach for youth players in Israel. I believe that I have the ability to do so, the desire and passion to reach that goal.”

Parting words:
“I want to use this opportunity to say a few words to my players: Next season some will stay and some will continue on. It’s not easy to be part of the Under-19 squad when you are a year younger than some of the players. Those who are strong willed and those with character will ultimately be the ones who will continue on and realize their dream. I hope that the tools that you’ve received from the staff will allow you to get over the hurdle of the first season.”

This past Saturday, Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, the Under-17 side won the ...

The Under-12 & Under-11 side’s fall in the State Cup Finals

Maccabi was represented in two State Cup Finals this evening but the Under-12 squad lost to Petah Tikva and the Under-11 team were defeated by Maccabi Netanya

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC Youth Department clubs played in a pair of State Cup Finals at Ramat Gan Stadium. The Under-12 and Under-11 sides may have fell in battle but over 1,500 fans enjoyed a night of football at the National Stadium.

Maccabi Tel Aviv Under-11 5:6 Maccabi Netanya
The Under-11 side fell to Maccabi Netanya in a close and dramatic final as the field was split into two as the teams played with 7 players and a goalkeeper on each half of the pitch. The final score was a combination of both sides, with the matches being 35 minutes in length per half. The young Yellow & Blue fought valiantly as the match was close throughout, however, Netanya scored the winner with just a few minutes to go in the contest. Amit Kardi, Iddo Olie with a brace, Sagi Rozlis and Yuval Kfir all scored for Maccabi.

Maccabi “Oz” Tel Aviv Under-12 5:8 Maccabi Petah Tikva
The Under-12’s lost the State Cup Final to Maccabi Petah Tikva using the same format as the Under-11’s with two matches going on at the same time, each on half of a pitch with 35 minute halves and 7 players plus a goalkeeper. Goal scorers for the Yellow & Blue included Osher Bruchim, along with Ori Azu and Ben Yehezkel who recorded braces.

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC Youth Department clubs played in a pair of ...

Two Days of Youth State Cup Finals

The Under-17, Under-12 and Under-11 clubs will be playing for a number of titles over the next few days. Will the Under-17's complete the Double?

As the 2016/17 season nears its end, State Cup Finals will be on tap for a number of teams in the Maccabi Tel Aviv FC Youth Department. Three squads will be vying for the prestigious title and will look to add hardware to their trophy cabinets.

Tuesday May 16, 2017
The Under-11 Maccabi Tel Aviv team will meet Maccabi Netanya at the Ramat Gan Stadium at 17:00 and the admission is free.

The Maccabi “Oz” Tel Aviv Under-12 side will face Maccabi Petah Tikva at the Ramat Gan Stadium at 19:00 and admission is free.

Wednesday May 17, 2017
The Under-17 club, Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv will take on Maccabi Haifa at the Moshava Stadium in Petah Tikva at 17:00 and admission is free. A victory by the Yellow & Blue will hand them the Double and will complete a fantastic week of football as they just won the League Title this past weekend.

As the 2016/17 season nears its end, State Cup Finals will be ...

56 Goals, 22 Wins & the League Title: The Under-17 Championship in Numbers

Just prior to the end of the Under-17 season we've put together some interesting stats and facts from their fantastic campaign. The goals, the fabulous scorers, the streaks and more is inside

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv (Under-17) took home the League Championship on Saturday. The win over the last place team Hapoel Petah Tikva ensured that the title would be Yellow & Blue two Matchdays before the end of the season.

This is the second league title in a row for the Under-17 squad as they will look to complete the Double on Wednesday when they face the Carmel Greens for the State Cup Title.

But just before Eliezer Ben Aharon’s club vies for the Cup, let’s look back at some of the superb stats and interesting facts from the league campaign that was.

After 28 Matchdays in the Under-17 Ligat Ha’Al, the club has won 22 matches, drew 4 and lost two. The young Yellow & Blue actually won two more contests than last season when they finished the campaign off with 20 victories. Maccabi “Oded” scored 56 goals in league action and 9 in Cup play. The average goals per match stands at 2 placing them second overall in the league, while they’ve only given up .7 goals per match coming in first amongst the Ligat Ha’Al clubs giving up only 19 goals all season long.

Amazingly, the squad opened the season up going 17 games without a loss over all competitions, including 12 straight wins.

Ben Aharon’s team was also fabulous on the defensive end of the game going 474 minutes without giving up a goal having the streak broken in the championship match while defeating Hapoel Petah Tikva 6:1. Over the course of the season, the Tel Aviv side picked up three comeback wins, twice coming in the Derby against Hapoel Tel Aviv and once away at Maccabi Haifa.

The leading scorer is Sahar Berami. As of this past Matchday the young striker has scored 15 goals and two more in Cup play. Berami finds himself in second place overall amongst the league leading scorers just one goal away from first place. One of his best matches came against Beitar Jerusalem in a 6:2 win at Kiryat Shalom when Berami scored four goals.

On Wednesday May 17th at 17:00, Maccabi “Oded” faces Maccabi Haifa for the State Cup at the Moshava Stadium.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv (Under-17) took home the League Championship on Saturday. ...

Yellow & Blue Saturday – Match Results May 13, 2017

The Under-15 North side defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv 5:1 in the Derby, the Under-16's fall in Jerusalem and the rest of the Youth Department results are inside

Beitar “Shmuel” Jerusalem 4:3 Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv
After 7 straight victories, Alon Brumer’s side fell to Beitar in Jerusalem. Omri Ram, Assaf Hershko and an own goal led to the Yellow & Blue markers as the squad will finish in 3rd place with one match remaining in the season.

Hapoel Beer Sheva 5:4 Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 south side fell away at Beer Sheva, however, there was an interesting feat in the contest as Yellow & Blue keeper Ben Musayov scored from a goal kick. Stav Nachmani, Nehoray Bitton and Shaked Navon also found the back of the goal for Maccabi “Eldad”. Head Coach Uri David said: “It was a tough match and even though we lost I’m proud of my players for their performance in a very difficult place to play.”

Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv 5:1 Hapoel North Tel Aviv
Amor Sofer’s squad took care of the Reds in a Derby that took place at Kiryat Shalom. The young Yellow & Blue took an early 2:0 lead and didn’t take their foot off of the pedal as Yonatan Imberg, Yishay Bozorgi, Yalli Lazar, Afek Sapir and Aner Ausmadi all scored for the Under-15’s. The Head Coach commented on the win after the game: “I’m very happy with the players and how they’ve been able to adapt to the philosophy of the club. I can see improvement in the squad and this game is proof of that. I’m also happy how three players from the Under-14 team have been able to integrate into the club and they played a big role in the match itself.”

Beitar “Shmuel” Jerusalem 4:3 Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv After 7 straight victories, ...

Maccabi “Shachar” wins 3:1, Almog scores a brace

Guy Tzarfati's squad continued there fine form and picked up another victory this time against Maccabi Petah Tikva thanks to a pair of goals by the striker

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv recorded their 5th win in 6 matches after defeating Maccabi Petah Tikva 3:1. The win moves Guy Tzarfati’s club into second place thanks to a better goal differential than Hapoel Raanana as both teams have 55 points.

The hosts almost took a 17th minute lead but Yellow & Blue keeper Omer Katz made a one-on-one save to keep the match goalless. In the 32nd minute, Eden Kartzev found Eylon Almog with a deep pass and beat the Petah Tikva keeper to give the Under-19 side a 1:0 lead. Maccabi continued to press for second goal but came up short as the sides went into the break with the Yellow & Blue maintaining the slim 1:0 advantage.

However, Maccabi Petah Tikva took advantage of a Maccabi defensive breakdown to draw even at 1:1 in the 66th minute. Tzarfati’s squad looked for the go ahead goal and found it in the 80th minute via Almog yet again after taking a cross from Peleg Moshe. Just before the final whistle Prince Thomas gave Maccabi “Shachar” a 3:1 win as he scored in the 94th minute to give the young Yellow & Blue the 3-points.

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv recorded their 5th win in 6 matches after ...

Under-17’s Crowned League Champions

With two Matchdays remaining in the season, Eliezer Ben Aharon's side took home the league title after defeating Hapoel Petah Tikva 6:1. Dani Amer & Adir Hardon recorded braces

The Under-17 club’s fine season hasn’t ended yet, but they’ve already won the league championship by defeating Hapoel Petah Tikva 6:1 at Kiryat Shalom with two Matchdays left in the campaign.

The young Yellow & Blue dominated the Under-17 Ligat Ha’Al and stayed atop the table throughout the season, winning the championship in style.

Maccabi took the lead in the 7th minute thanks to a goal by Adir Hardon, however, the visitors drew even just two minutes later. But, the Under-17’s put on a show for the balance of the first half scoring goals via Sahar Berami, another goal by Hardon and a brace by Dani Amer to go into the break with a 5:1 advantage.

With Maccabi “Oded” holding the lead, they continued to control the pace of the match and added another goal thanks to Omer Brami giving Ben Aharon’s side a 6:1 win and the league title.

On Wednesday, the Under-17’s will look to complete the double when they face Maccabi Haifa at the Moshava Stadium, 17:00 (free admission).

The Under-17 club’s fine season hasn’t ended yet, but they’ve already won ...

Mofi Danziger Foundation Scholarship Ceremony

The annual scholarship ceremony took place at Kiryat Shalom where 10 athletes from the Ilan Foundation and the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department were awarded the prestigious prize

The Michael “Mopi” Danziger Foundation Scholarship ceremony took place this morning at the Maccabi Tel Aviv Kiryat Shalom Training Center. The annual ceremony was attended by Sport Director Jordi Cruyff, Performance Director Patrick van Leeuwen as well as Gal Alberman who presented the scholarship awards.

The foundation is named after Supreme Court judge Yoram Danziger’s father and provides outstanding handicapped athletes and players from the Maccabi youth department with scholarships to help them continue to develop their skills. This year 5 athletes from the Ilan Foundation were awarded scholarships including: Hamze Kasam (swimmer 11yrs old), Michaela Yosopov (table tennis 15yrs old), Arthur Hasson (basketball 14yrs old), Rom Levi (swimmer 13yrs old) and Guy Vaknin (tennis 18yrs old) along with five players from the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department: Daniel Peretz (Under-17), Itai Rada (Under-15), Alon Abdi (Under-13), Amit Shadadi (Under-12) and Amit Kardi (Under-11).

Just before the scholarship presentation, Yoram Danziger said: “It’s exciting to have the Ilan athletes and Maccabi Tel Aviv players here together at this event. The understanding of Ilan’s handicapped athletes will help all players in the future. What brings these children together whether they are handicapped or not is the fight and the battle that they give on a day to day basis. The attempt to fight the pain and overcome the challenges that they have pushes them to continue to excel and prove themselves.”

Jordi Cruyff also spoke at the ceremony and said: “Moments like this also touch me on a personal level. My father started a foundation of his own and said that if you are in a position where you can help others you are obligated to do so. It’s always important to give others the chance to succeed who normally wouldn’t have these opportunities. Just as I learned from my father, I can say that I’m proud to be here today.”

The Michael “Mopi” Danziger Foundation Scholarship ceremony took place this morning at ...

Youth Department Saturday Action – May 13, 2017

The Under-17's look to wrap up their league title, the Under-16's will attempt to keep their winning streak alive and the Under-19's will try to move up to second place. All that are more is inside

Maccabi “Asis David” Petah Tikva- Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, 11:00 Petah Tikva Synthetic
Guy Tzarfati’s club will look to pick up their 4th win in five matches as they face Petah Tikva on Matchday 29 of the Youth Ligat Ha’Al. A win may help the side move into second place ahead of Hapoel Raanana at they are separated by only 2 points (Raanana 54 points to Maccabi’s 52).

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Dr Bachar Petah Tikva, 11:00 Kiryat Shalom
Holding a 7 point lead with only 3 Matchdays remaining, Eliezer Ben Aharon’s Under-17 squad will look to take home the league title against the last place club. Maccabi “Oded” have not only won their last four games in a row but have also not let in a goal over that time as well.

Beitar “Shmuel” Jerusalem – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 09:00 Bayit Vegan synthetic
The Under-16 side will head to Jerusalem sporting 7 straight wins in which they have scored 31 goals as Alon Brumer’s team are three points out of second place and six points out of first. With two Matchdays remaining in the season, Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” still have a theoretical chance of winning the championship.

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv, 11:00 Beer Sheva Synthetic
Ori David’s side will head south for an away match at Beer Sheva on the last Matchday of their Under-15 season as the young Yellow & Blue will look to end the campaign on a high note and a win.

Maccabi “Ilan” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Tel Aviv North, 10:30 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic
The Under-15 North Club will play a Derby against the second to last place team as Amir Sofer’s side find themselves in 4th place after an away victory at Maccabi Petah Tikva.

Maccabi “Asis David” Petah Tikva- Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, 11:00 Petah ...