The Maccabi Tel Aviv squad have gone north ahead of tomorrow's match against Ironi Kiryat Shmona, knowing a victory will increase their lead at the top of the Israeli Premier League to ten points
This evening the Maccabi Tel Aviv squad concluded their final preparations ahead of their top-six playoff match against Ironi Kiryat Shmona, the last game of matchweek 29. The team departed directly following the final practice and will stay at a hotel until kick-off. A victory tomorrow, at the venue where they suffered their last league defeat in January, will increase their lead at the top of the Israeli Premier League to ten points, but head coach Paulo Sousa has his feet firmly on the ground: "Mathematically we are not yet champions, there are still points (to play for). I think from the beginning what you've heard from me and the players and the club is that we always want to be consistent, we want to continue to think game by game. For the mathematics to guarantee us the championship, we still need to work really well, especially in tomorrow's game". Asked whether second-placed Hapoel Beer Sheva's draw on Saturday has relieved some of the pressure on the team, he replied: "It's not true. It's something we already spoke about. Even when they were close or closer to us, we kept focusing on ourselves, we kept believing in ourselves, we kept developing our culture, our football philosophy, of course while also looking at the league, trying to win the league. Of course one of the things we always consider is the way we manage our work during the week, it's the way we think we can judge the performance of the team. After we finished international duties, and after two or three weeks to breathe again and have our players back fresher, we were able to understand during these weeks which players are capable of delivering their highest intensity, physically but especially mentally, to produce good performances and win matches. This is what happens during the week and hopefully we can transfer everything positive we've done this week into tomorrow's game".
It was in Kiryat Shmona on the 13th of January that Maccabi Tel Aviv lost their last league match. So far Paulo Sousa is concerned, that was then and this is now: "First of all the moments were completely different. Today is a different moment for both teams. I think for them it's a much better moment than what they've been doing so far, during the whole season, and especially in the last ten games. And considering they've only conceded two goals in the last two games and scored six, it's a team that are consistent in everything they do. With that it's also up to them to keep up this consistency but I'm sure it will be a different game, a game where our team and our players will be able to perform their best, with high intensity, to perform both individually and collectively to get a different result than last one". Asked if striker Rade Prica's return from suspension made choosing between him and newcomer and ex-Kiryat Shmona striker Barak Badash more difficult, Sousa replied: "In all cases we need to be looking for solutions and for the players to be prepared to perform and to help the team. It doesn't matter all that much what the decision of the coach is".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRLXjMp7UpQ&list=UU-oWQqnf8B8a_TsmVi0mTUg
Playing for Kiryat Shmona in January, Badash scored a brace against Maccabi but has now changed sides and will surely try to have an impact on his ex. Sousa: "I think our opponent has great quality in their players, not only from the present but also from the past. They always deliver good players to important clubs in Israel and they still have them too but we're scouting every day, in every match and we're always looking to have players help us to improve ourselves, to achieve the targets we want to achieve during the season, depending on the moment. In this case it was in January, something we predicted could be very difficult for us, the last part of the season, and it has been difficult. For that we now have a player like (Barak) Badash to help us. He's still integrating. He's managed to put his football in the team but also he has had to adapt to the type of football of the team because it's completely different to what he's been used to in the past. To achieve that, we're making a great effort to provide room for his performance in the team, inside the team, also for tomorrow. And I'm sure tomorrow he'll have extra motivation to show to his ex-teammates, to his ex-coach, that he was an important player for them and that this time he's an important player for us".
Next week Ironi Kiryat Shmona will appear at the national stadium in Ramat Gan for the semi-final fixture of the prestigious State Cup. No doubt they'll be concerned that a number of their players are approaching suspension for a fifth bookable offence. Sousa: "They're problems are not ours. We also passed a period this season with a number of games consecutively but of course from what I hear I think they need to be concerned because Maccabi are a team who produce lots of football, we create a lot of attacking situations and because of that players who are close to the limit of yellow cards will be exposed much more often when they play against Maccabi Tel Aviv."
Finally, the Maccabi head coach addressed himself to the question of Maccabi's changing style of play throughout the season, in particular in the team's last encounter against Hapoel Beer Sheva: "In the beginning of the season if you remember we played with (striker Barak) Itzhaki as a winger playing more as a second striker with also Tal Ben Haim in the wing, sometimes with (midfielder Dor) MIcha, so true, it's not completely the same. Again, and this is something I keep saying, of course the players change because they have different characteristics. The most important thing is to have the players show me they are in shape, that they have the hunger and desire to perform, to deliver. And depending on the opponent we make decisions, always looking to be the best because no-one exists that wants to win games more than me".
Also attending the press conference was team defender Omri Ben Harush and he had this to say about tomorrow's match: "So far we're concerned tomorrow's game is very important, with a lot of significance with respect to the rest of the season. We'll be preparing ourselves the best we know how and hope to return with all three points. At this stage in the season there's no reason to get complacent, on the contrary, we have to be at the top of our game in all respects to finish off the season the way we want. So we come into every match prepared and ready to play our best to get the win. That's in the character of the team and we're happy about having such a good season. As for me personally, I think I've brought up my game significantly since I came to Maccabi. I knew when I arrived that I might not be the last piece in the puzzle, but as a player that makes no difference. I do all I can to improve my play and I'm really happy with my progress".
Ben Harush made his way to Maccabi Tel Aviv in last summer's transfer window from Maccabi Netanya, who have already booked their place for a return to the Premier League after spending a season in the first division: "I'm extremely happy for them that they've made it back so fast, to my mind that's where they belong. It's a big club, one I'm very fond of, and it makes me very glad to have them back. They're a top notch outfit who have pulled themselves up this season and, really, hats off to them".
