Just a month after Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Maccabi Haifa 5:1 at Kiryat Eliezer, the Yellow-and-Blue hosted the Greens at the Ashdod Stadium due to a radius punishment
Maccabi Haifa came into the match looking for revenge after being blown away the prior month by the Yellow-and-Blue. Avram Grant and his charges came into the match in top form as the young coach opened the game with a very strong lineup that featured the likes of Uvarov, Polukarov, Nimni, Zohar, Klinger and Eli Drikes.
It took only 19 minutes for the 6,000 Maccabi fans see Nimni race past Aharoni and send a precise ball that Avi Cohen (Jerusalemite) headed into the Greens goal for a 1:0 lead. In the 23rd minute, Nimni picked up his second assist of the match when he sent the ball to Itzik Zohar who throttled a right footed scorcher into the Haifa goal for a 2:0 lead.
Just one minute later Zohar launched another rocket from 30-meters out that Buskila was able to paw away but Eli Drikes was in the right place to score Maccabi’s third goal of the game. Nimni picked up another assist this time in the 52nd minute while Avi Cohen The Jerusalemite scored the team’s fourth goal. Meir Melika scored the Yellow-and-Blue’s fifth marker off an assist by Amir Turgeman in the 67th minute.
Reuven Atar scored a penalty in the 70th minute to save Haifa from total embarrassment on this night. Maccabi Tel Aviv Starting Lineup: Aleksandr Uvarov, Avi Cohen, Aleksandr Polukarov, Menashe Shmanov, Amir Schelach, Nir Klinger, Noam Shoham (Uri Malmillian), Avi Nimni, Itzik Zohar, Meir Melika, Eli Drikes (Amir Turgeman).
