Hundreds of ecstatic fans created an electric atmosphere at Maccabi's opening practice of the 2014/15 season
With the close of the 2013/14 season just a month or so behind us, preparations for 2014/15 officially got underway today as Kiryat Shalom training ground hosted the opening practice of the new season. And in what has now become a great Maccabi tradition, hundreds of enthusiastic Maccabi supporters, some wearing the recently released official 2014/15 team shirt, took the opportunity to provide a warm welcome to the players, who returned to training in their brand new 2014/15 training kit. Hardly able to contain their excitement, the fans still managed to race across the training pitch in an orderly fashion. But once they reached their emerging idols in yellow the festivities broke out in earnest: Songs, shoulder rides and "selfies" with their favourite Maccabi stars were the order of the day, with returning head coach Oscar Garcia receiving a particularly warm reception by fans delighted to see their former boss returning from his year-long sojourn in England and once again taking up the reins at Kiryat Shalom.
Clearly the fans would have been content to continue the celebrations, but after half an hour it was time for the players and coaching staff to commence with their training routine. For their part the fans somewhat reluctantly made their way to the terraces but continued their displays of support from there. The entire Maccabi squad participated in the practice, including those who played for the national team in international friendlies earlier this month. Among the participants were also young midfielder Moshe Lugassi and goalkeeper Tomer Chencinski, both of whom spent parts of last season out on loan. New faces were to be seen as well: Defender Yuval Shpungin, who rejoined the club after spells at Cypriot side Omonia and Belgian club Mons, and young midfielder Ben Reichert, who joined the club at the end of last season from domestic side Ironi Ramat Hasharon.
While the fans continued to sing their admiration just off the training pitch, the squad were put through their paces and completed a full practice as planned. They will continue with regular training sessions at Kiryat Shalom until next Friday June 26th, when they'll depart for a ten-day training camp in Austria. By that time team and fans alike will already have discovered the identity of Maccabi's opponents in the second round of the Champions League qualifiers, after the draw is held next Monday, June 23rd.
To see more pictures from today's festive opening practice go to Maccabi Tel Aviv's official Facebook and Google+ pages.
