Maccabi Tel Aviv came up short and fell to Bnei Yehuda in penalties 4:3 after 120 minutes of goalless play. Stav Finish scored the winning penalty handing the State Cup to the Yellow & Blue’s city rivals.
Prematch
Head Coach Lito Vidigal’s Starting XI included Serbian shot stopper Predrag Rajikovic along with a defenders Eli Dasa, Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi and Captain Sheran Yeini. Gal Alberman anchored the midfield while Ruben Micael and Eyal Golasa provided support in the middle of the pitch while Dor Micha, Tal Ben Chaim and Vidar Kjartansson played in front.
Available of the bench were keeper Daniel Lifshitz, Aaron Schoenfeld, Avi Rikan, Egor Filipenka, Ramon Roma, Oscar Scarione and Yossi Benayoun.
Bnei Yehuda’s Starting lineup featured Emilios Zobas, Maor Kandil, Tal Kabila, Marko Jovanovic, Sean Goldberg, Antonio Mrsic, Tijan Jaiteh, Yonatan Cohen, Alon Turgeman, Nerijus Valkskis, Roie Gordana. Substitutes included Nikita Haikin, Stav Finish, Almog Bozaglo, Itzik Azuz, Pedro Galvan, Daniel Avital and Shay Konstantini.
First Half
After almost ten minutes of midfield play, Ben Chaim took a sharp angled shot from the right side that Zubas was able to save to keep the match goalless early on. Two minutes later, Micael’s corner went out to Alberman at the top of the box but his long range effort was wide left of the goal.
With Maccabi controlling the ball for much of the next 20 minutes they had a number of free kicks and corners that couldn’t find the target. In the 32nd minute, Micha left Golasa a perfect ball at the top of the box but his attempt just missed the top left hand corner of the goal as the score remained 0:0.
In the 34th minute, Bnei Yehuda had a counter attack down the pitch but Yonatan Cohen’s effort flew over the goal and out. Ten minutes later Micael again was in the thick of the action but Kjartansson was a bit too late for his cross as the sides went into the break even at 0:0.
Second Half
Micael featured once again at the start of the second half as his corner was headed just wide of the goal by Yeini with Maccabi looking to break the deadlock. Following a Mrsic yellow card in the 54th minute, Alberman took a low shot that just scooted by the left post. Rajikovic came up big in the 60th minute when he was called upon to make a fantastic save on Mrsic’s sharp angled shot, while a minute later Bnei Yehuda threatened again but Turgeman’s chance went out, wide of the goal.
Alberman took a chance from long distance but skied the ball over the bar in the 67th minute and one minute later Micael turned at the top of the box but put the ball wide right of the goal. In the 79th minute Bnei Yehuda came racing down the pitch with numbers but Valkskis shot the ball to the left of the goal and out. A minute later Micael picked up a yellow card as Maccabi kept pressing for a goal.
In the 81st minute, Dasa tried his luck from long range but Zobas made the save while three minutes later Avi Rikan was introduced in favor of Ruben Micael. With the contest entering the 89th minute, Yeini took a ball in the box but his left footed effort went just over the bar while Micha’s opportunity one minute later just missed wide right as the contest went into extratime.
Extratime
Almog Bozaglo had the first chance of the extratime period but Rajikovic was up to the task and made the save in the 99th minute. One minute later, Yossi Benayoun came in for Micha as Coach Vidigal made his second substitute of the match. Golasa was pulled down in the box on the next play in what looked to be good for a penalty but the referee decided otherwise and issued number 23 a yellow card instead.
As the match hit the 105th minute Alberman was handed a yellow card for a reckless tackle and as the referee added a minute of injury time to the first half of extratime Kjartansson’s effort just went over the bar.
Oscar Scarione came on in the 108th minute in place of Tal Ben Chaim while Bnei Yehuda had a chance to break the ice in the 110th minute but Mrsic’s header was off target. Two minutes later Scarione lofted a terrific ball into the box but Kjartansson’s header was off the mark as the match remained goalless through the balance of the second extratime period forcing the contest to penalties.
Penalties
Alberman Goal
Valkskis Save
Rikan Goal
Jovanovic Goal
Kjartansson Goal
Bozaglo Goal
Scarione Save
Gordana Save
Benayoun Save
Cohen Goal
Ben Haim Save
Finish Goal
Bnei Yehuda wins the Israel State Cup.
