Maccabi Tel Aviv will begin the State Cup campaign with a visit to Leumit League side Bnei Lod on Saturday at 18:30. Just prior to the match, let’s get to know who the Yellow & Blue go up against in the Round of 32.
Abu Subhi’s Club:
Bnei Lod, coached by Sliman Azabarga plays in the Lod Municipal Stadium which seats 3,000 people. But the person who is always associated with the team, happens to be it’s owner, Mhammad Azberaga, better known as Abu Subhi.
How did they get to this stage in the State Cup?
Lod began its way in the competition last round when they easily defeated Hapoel Kfar Shalem of Liga Alef Darom.
What have they done this season?
After 17 Matchdays in the Leumit League, Lod who usually finds itself in the upper half of the table sits in 11th place with 20 points. They come into the contest with Maccabi having lost 3 of their last 4 league matches. Lod has given up 33 goals which happens to be the most in the Leumit League along with Hapoel Afula.
Key Players:
The most well known name on the Bnei Lod roster is former Maccabi defender Salam Abo Siam. The veteran left back who played in the Champions League with the Yellow & Blue in 2004 is the Lod captain and also the penalty kick specialist. Azabarga also has a pair of prolific attackers in Weal Marisat who played for Ashkelon last season helping the side to Ligat Ha’Al promotion while the second is foreigner Miroslav Antonov who scored 16 goals last campaign with Maccabi Yavne.
39-year old central defender Yair Azulay has played for a number of various clubs over the course of his long career while two Hapoel Beer Sheva players are currently on loan to Lod, Emran Alkrinawi and Mosa Tarabin. Former Premier League strikes Idan Shiriki and Yosef Abu Laben are also part of the squad.
In order to get a better look at Azabarga’s side this season we spoke to Beitar Tel Aviv/Ramle Head Coach Amir Turgeman who spoke about Maccabi’s rivals this Saturday night: “Bnei Lod is much better than what the table suggests. You don’t know exactly what to expect from them. They can win 4:0 and also lose 4:0, but one thing is for sure, they will come to fight and play hard. However, they will also come to play football.”
Warning signals:
In the 2011/12 season Lod bounced Beitar Jerusalem from the State Cup Round of 32 when the contest went to penalty kicks (4:3 to Lod) after a goalless draw through 120 minutes. In the Round of 16 Azabarga’s crew fell to Hapoel Tel Aviv 1:3 after extra time.
