Maccabi's U19 international midfielder Matan Hozez scored the winning goal in Israel's first qualifying match for the European Under-19 Championship
Last night Israel's national Under-19 team, boasting three players from the Maccabi Tel Aviv "Shachar" squad, kicked off their European Under-19 Championship qualifying campaign at Netanya's new Municipal Stadium with an important 2-1 victory over Bulgaria. Midfielder and team captain Dan Glazer, defender Guy Aviv and midfielder Matan Hozez, who scored the winning goal for Israel, all started for the Israeli side. Israel are hosting all the matches in Group 8, that besides Bulgaria also includes Sweden and the Ukraine.
After Bulgaria had taken the lead just after the half hour mark through midfielder Veselin Lyubomirov, Ashdod FC midfielder Lior Einbrom equalised from close range just six minutes later. With the two sides still locked in a 1-1 draw ten minutes from time, Maccabi's Matan Hozez charged down the left, cut in towards the area and released a superbly curled right-footed shot that landed in the upper right-hand corner of the net and handed victory to Israel. This was Hozez's fourth international appearance and he maintains his impressive average of one goal per game in international competition.
In the group's other match, Sweden and the Ukraine battled out a 2-2 draw at the Shfayim sports complex near Tel Aviv. Tomorrow (Friday) Israel will continue their campaign against Sweden while Ukraine face Bulgaria. The final group-stage matches will take place on Monday when Israel face the Ukraine and Sweden meet Bulgaria. All of Israel's matches will be played in Netanya and admission is free.
