Vladimir Ivic, the Maccabi Tel Aviv Head Coach addressed the assembled media ahead of the Club’s 8th Round State Cup clash at Beitar Jerusalem on Saturday night December 22 at 21:00:
“It’s a tough game against a strong opponent in the first game of this competition. Our target is to win the game and make sure we are we prepared. We have to be at our best to get a good result and advance to the next stage.”
Are Maccabi favorites against Beitar?
“I don’t know if we are favorites as this is the start of a different competition. We are playing in a hot stadium with a lot of fans. I hope that we will have a strong showing from our supporters. We need to give 100% to achieve the victory and advance to the next stage.”
Keeping the team level headed:
“We do our job, myself and the other coaches. We know that every game for Maccabi is important and we go game by game. Many players have been with the club for many years. We don’t want to make an excuse after the game and we must fight from the first to the last second of the game. We don’t know what may happen during the game but that’s how we operate; game by game. We respect Beitar and we believe in ourselves and want to win the game.”
Injury issues:
“Some players will return after some small problems. Everything is under control and haven’t had any new issues over the last few days.”
