Maccabi's U19s put on a stellar attacking performance to slam eight past Sektzia Nes Tziona without reply. Yonatan Cohen scored four
With the Israeli U19 Premier League title race with Maccabi Haifa heating up, Maccabi Tel Aviv "Shachar" are only too aware that there is no room for mistakes. Today head coach Ziv Arie's charges headed out for a matchweek 10 away fixture against Sektzia Nes Tsiona and placed a huge tick next to an encounter bursting with attacking fervour virtually free of defensive errors. Four goals on either side of the break handed "Shachar" their largest victory so far in the league this season and three valuable and confidence-building points in their race against their northern namesakes, who they will play in matchweek 12.
Maccabi dominated proceedings start to finish and prevented their rivals from even approaching their own goal area, giving keeper Haviv Ohayon a quiet afternoon. The first twenty minutes saw "Shachar" getting closer and closer to their target, but in the 22nd minute the real goalfest began. Striker Yonatan Cohen scored the first of his four goals from a corner that rolled past team-mate Shaked Azulay into the net. Five minutes later a second corner got a poor clearance and this time Azulay was in no mood to let the chance go begging. His powerful shot made it 0-2 but just nine minutes later "Shachar" were on the scoresheet again when forward Mavis Tchibota tapped in for 0-3. A minute from the half, young international Matan Hozez characteristically curled in with his left foot to the far post and sent his team-mates into the break with a commanding 0-4 lead.
After the restart "Shachar" showed no signs of taking their foot off the gas and the team's fifth was not long in coming. Yonatan Cohen scored his second after stopping the ball at the edge of the Nes Tziona area and smashing it back into the net for 0-5. Substitute striker Raz Yitzhak came close after a handsome personal effort, but "Shachar"'s sixth came just twelve minutes before time. Matan Hozez squared up a splendid ball for substitute Omri Haramati and the midfielder made it 0-6 with his first ever Under-19 goal. Just a minute later Yonatan Cohen scored his third for 0-7 and a minute from time the striker rounded off the scoring with his fourth, simultaneously jumping to the head of the queue of season goalscorers in the U19 Premier League.
Next Saturday Maccabi Tel Aviv "Shachar" will host Hapoel Kiryat Shmona at the Kiryat Shalom training ground in Tel Aviv.
Line-up: Haviv Ohayon, Sachar Fiban, Sheked Azulay, Sean Goldberg, Maxim Gretschkin, Gabriel Kanikovski,, Sohil Armeli, Eliel Peretz, Matan Hozez, Mavis Tchibota, Yonatan Cohen.
