Shahar Piven, one of a number of Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Department products scored his debut goal in Yellow & Blue as Vladimir Ivic’s side defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv 4:1 in the Toto Cup semifinal Derby:
“My main goal is to help keep a clean sheet and play well defensively. The goal I scored was just a bonus.”
Winning:
“It’s the first Derby after a year and I had never experienced a Derby before. It was a very exciting match, we played hard and came back from a deficit early on. I’m happy that we won and now we have to continue forward.”
The fans:
“It was very exciting to see the fans cheering us on. A derby has its own rules and it doesn’t matter in what competition, Toto Cup, League, State Cup, it’s always great to win a Derby.”
Fans appreciative of the home grown players:
“All the players performed well and the fans really appreciate the hard work that we put in to this match. The fans appreciate home grown players that have come out of the youth department. I had been on loan for some time but now I made it to this stage and I’m so proud to put on the Maccabi kit.”
Taking advantage of the opportunity to play and battling for a spot:
“I really appreciate the opportunity that I was given from the bottom of my heart. I knew it would take time to get into the squad as we have to fight and battle for a spot. I’m ready to go to war for a place in the Starting XI or the squad itself.”
Working hard:
“You can see how the fans appreciate the younger players and the coach isn’t afraid to give us playing time in the Europa League. I’m sure it will also happen in the league. As long as we work hard we will play.”
Final thoughts:
“We are happy with the result in a game that we played well and which was very emotional. It’s great to win a Derby.”
