Midfielder Maharan Radi commented on the fact that for the past nine seasons, Maccabi Tel Aviv have failed to beat Maccabi Haifa at their Kiryat Eliezer Stadium: "We're not suffering from any mental block"
After a three week break for internationals and the Jewish High Holidays, Maccabi Tel Aviv return to the league tomorrow at 9pm to play Maccabi Haifa at their Kiryat Eliezer Stadium. The last time the Yellow Tide prevailed there in this tie was in May 2004, but ahead of the match Maccabi Tel Aviv head coach Paulo Sousa had this to say about that history: "We don't care about the past. The goal of a club like Maccabi Tel Aviv and the club mentality is to win every match. We have a great deal of respect for all our opponents, especially Maccabi Haifa who were unlucky in their Europa League opener, and we anticipate a tricky encounter. It's of no interest whatsoever if our advantage over Maccabi Haifa will be six points or three, it's all the same to us, our mentality is to win". As for the injuries suffered to defender Manuel Ortiz (Manne) and striker Tal Ben Haim during the Europa League match against APOEL, the coach added: "So far we have two injuries, (defender) Reef (Peretz) and Manne, everyone else is match fit and ready to give their best performance. So far our mentality is concerned, we're always focused on winning every match".
Midfielder Maharan Radi spoke about tomorrow's encounter and the fact that Maccabi Tel Aviv's last victory over Maccabi Haifa at their Kiryat Eliezer Stadium is already becoming a fading memory: "I don't think we have a mental block about playing at Kiryat Eliezer Stadium, last season's game was also a balanced affair. I don't believe there's something about the venue that bothers us, it's a part of the game and we're trying to improve and learn from our mistakes. So far our mentality is concerned, our points advantage over Maccabi Haifa may just give us that extra push to carry on, but last season we lost to (Hapoel) Beer Sheva after four opening wins and the tongues started wagging, but you see it had no impact on the rest of our season. I haven't heard anyone in the dressing room talking about our not having beaten Maccabi Haifa up north, for us it's like every other match, we want to pile up the points and that's what's important to us, not statistics".
Some 1,500 Maccabi Tel Aviv fans are expected to make the trip up north to see their team play in one of their last matches at Kiryat Eliezer, before the Haifa clubs move into their new stadium. Israel Rail have agreed to the club's request to make a special train available that will return southwards at 11.30pm from Haifa's Bat Galim station close to the stadium and with stops in Netanya and Herzliya will arrive in Tel Aviv in less than an hour. Please bear in mind that Maccabi Tel Aviv fans will be seated exclusively in terraces 6-8. Supporters purchasing tickets for terraces designated for Maccabi Haifa will be removed from the stadium and will not have their money refunded. Enforcement will be particularly stringent in terraces 9-10 and 5b.
