Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv will play Gadna Tel Aviv on Matchday 9 of league play. This match will be very special for the coach of the club, Eliezer Ben Aharon: “We have a Family Derby this coming Saturday. We have been laughing about it at home but it’s still sports and each one of us will do the maximum to win, though the family is trying to get me to be a bit complacent,” he said with a chuckle as this coming Saturday, Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv play Gadna Tel Aviv that is coached by his son Elad Ben Aharon.
“I went through a few scenarios in my head but I’m not sure how I’ll really react. I guess I’ll be a bit more restrained, but for 80 minutes we will each be on our own side and when 
the final whistle is blown we’ll become father and son once again and give each other a hug. The dinner before and after the match will be very interesting that’s for sure. It’s a bit strange to coach against your son but it also gives me a sense of pride.”
Aharon, who is coaching Maccabi’s Under-16 side is part of a project which is the first of its kind in Israel: “This is a new team, one that is composed of two Under-15 teams that we’ve brought together as one unit. This team is a project of the academy. All of the players without exception is a student at the Academy. They have three morning training sessions, classes where they get help if needed and they can also relax up in the quiet rooms. There are teachers that also help them with their studies. Maccabi sent me to training sessions abroad at an Academy that is very similar to what we have here. They have an annual structured football plan to suit their needs so this way we have the time to put into place all of the necessary content that we want, as well as controlling their diet and development. There are also other things that we do which can be seen during the evening training sessions.”
Ben Aharon explained as to how seriously the club takes it: “This team is the first that has all 22 students in the Academy. That was the condition. There were some good players that didn’t want to meet this requirement so Maccabi didn’t accept them. There is no other club that is investing the resources that we are. This is not a one or two day process but a long term plan. Whoever stays here and completes their stay in the youth department will end up with double the amount of training time with a dedicated staff that will continue to support them.”
About the results that will be seen in the future:
“This will take time. People may be looking at the results but for me the results may be fine and dandy but what’s most important is the change in the players. We have the best players who have the ability to win games. We want to give tools to the players so that at the later stages of their development they’ll be able to handle even bigger challenges. If a player can score goals but can’t play defense or be part of the team then I want to be able to help change the player so that he doesn’t get to the Under-17, the Under-19 or the first team and can’t make a pass. A lot of times the physical aspects of the game are greater in the youth team than in the first team so this is yet another place where we are trying to help them improve.”
