Maccabi Tel Aviv showed their superior class and were too good for Hapoel Kfar Sava in all departments in Saturday’s afternoon kickoff at Bloomfield as they notched a 4-0 win and swept their opponents aside.
It was one-way traffic for almost the entire 90 minutes as Kfar Sava were outclassed, and who for the last half hour were left with 10 men after having a player sent off. 
Maccabi looked confident from the start and Kfar Sava were barely able to mount a challenge. Indeed, Daniel Tenenbaum in the Maccabi goal only was tested seriously only once during the entire match.
Signs that a goal was in the offing came in the 15th minute when there were two close shaves within seconds, as first Eitan Tibi saw his header rebound off the post and then another header by Yonatan Cohen went just wide.
Itay Shechter finally converted a chance and in the 18th minute when unmarked in the area on the right, he blasted a right-foot shot diagonally high into the Kfar Sava net.
Omer Atzili made it 2-0 in the 55th minute with a powerful volley from 10 metres out after the ball was passed across the area from the left by Yonatan Cohen. 
Kfar Sava’s woes were compounded in the 60th minute when Mahmoud Youssef was sent off following a VAR review and referee Idan Leiba changed his yellow card to a red in response to Youssef going in studs first for a tackle on a Maccabi player.
Cohen finally got his own name on the score sheet after helping others score, he struck a similar, but even better goal to Schechter’s in the first half with a scorching left-footed shot from a sharp angle on the left that landed in the top right corner of the Kfar Sava net. 
Substitute Chico Ofoedu, now recovered from injury, completed the rout with a deflected header from close range gave Kfar Sava keeper Yigal Becker no chance to even react and the 9,549 fans who braved the cold and wet afternoon weather went home with a smile on their face. Kfar Sava had Becker to thank for ensuring the rout didn’t turn into an embarrassment as he made four additional good saves.
Maccabi’s next league clash will be away to second-placed Maccabi Haifa at Sammy Ofer Stadium on January 6.
