MTA's sports director Jordi Cruyff isn't despairing: "We're professionals, we're hungry and ambitious"
24 hours before thier critical return leg Europa League play-off match against Greek adversary Asteras Tripoli, Maccabi Tel Aviv held a press conference and a final pre-match practice at Larnaca's Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium. The Israeli champions go into the match trailing 2-0 from the first leg and MTA sports director Jordi Cruyff gave his estimate of the team's chances to overturn the deficit: "Obviously playing at a neutral venue will always make our job more difficult. We're the kind of club that gives that much more when we have the support of a big crowd but that's only normal in football. We're also professionals, we're hungry and ambitious and even though we're trailing we'll fight to the very end and when it's over we'll see what the result is".
"The current circumstances, especially ones we have no control over, are not helping any of the Israeli clubs. You can see that all the Israeli clubs suffered by hosting matches at neutral venues and the results were not good. Our job is to stay focused despite the circumstances and give it everything we have". Yesterday the Maccabi squad experienced a day of changes in the coaching staff and Cruyff tried to estimate the influence that might have on the team ahead of tomorrow's match: "The coach decided to step down and we have to accept that. We have a new coach who will be at the stadium and we hope it will motivate and energise the players to show they're at the level he requires of them".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms-EZTRSZp0&feature=youtu.be
"We're in a state of transition between two coaching staffs so clearly we all have to work a little harder. But there will be a coach on the touch-line tomorrow and we'll make an announcement about that. The fact that I'm sitting here already indicates I'll be taking on a bigger role than I usually do, primarily in choosing the first eleven, but at the end of the day we'll all work as a team. In any case Juan Torrijo will be staying on so they'll be at least one familiar face from two years ago and the beginning of this season. Another advantage is that there won't be any change in the training regime this season".
Cruyff hopes that tomorrow night might just be a time for the team to excel: "I don't think it's connected to any special motivation. I'm always motivated but I just think this is a time for many of us to take responsibility. I'll do my bit, the players will have to do theirs and I hope that together we'll display the spirit of Maccabi and set the right tone for the rest of the season. If we can get a good result tomorrow it will be wonderful".
Cruyff also had a word to say about the departing coach: "Like I've said many times before, we go back a long way with Oscar. We've never had a confrontation and we never will. We know one another too well for that, we're always on the same line and if we ever work together again it'll be just the same. We never react to other theories, we're just focused on our work. We didn't want this to happen but it happened and Oscar left. We hope that Maccabi fans will ignore all the rumours and will focus on helping the club. It'll be our job to make them proud and hopefully we'll be getting started tomorrow".
Maccabi skipper Sheran Yeini attempted to explain why these recent changes might be to the team's advantage: "It's possible that everything that's happened will result in a better performance because all the lads will have to prove themselves in front of the new coach. Everyone wants to show what they're capable of, how hard they're working so that the new gaffer will be favourably impressed from the very start of the season. You could see it already at yesterday's practice, there was an awful lot of energy". As for Maccabi's start of the season Yeini said: "Look, everybody wants to get as far as possible, but everything has its time. There's an awful lot that's been happening recently, but we're not going to use that as an excuse for how we've opened the season. So far we're concerned, tomorrow is the opening of the season and this is the most important match we have right now". Asked what his first impressions were of the new coach Pako Ayestaran, Yeini added: "You can tell the guy is very energetic".
