Maccabi Tel Aviv’s will host Hapoel Kiryat Shmona at Bloomfield on Sunday (kickoff 20:15) and it will be the 33rd meeting between the two sides in the league. To date, Maccabi have won 18 times, there have been seven draws and the visitors from the north have won eight times. The goal difference is 58-37 in favour of Maccabi.
The past eight meetings have yielded wins for Maccabi and that is three short of the record for wins over the same opponents which was set against Hapoel Acre in 2017-18 and Zafririm Holon in 2000-01.
There have been 16 home games against Kiryat Shmona with 12 wins for Maccabi, three draws and two losses. The goal difference is 39-14. In the last 11 home games against Kiryat Shmona there have been ten wins and one draw.
In the previous meeting against Kiryat Shmona in the north, Maccabi set the new all-time league record of going 1,002 minutes without conceding a goal. Now, Maccabi need three more games without letting in a goal to break their own 21 matches without conceding in a season. That mark was set in 2011-12.
Eighteen players have turned out for both sides over the years but Eitan Tibi is the only current player who has also played for Kiryat Shmona.
Eran Zahavi has scored most goals against our visitors, with 12, while Eliran Atar is second with seven.
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There have been nine penalties in matches between the two clubs (five for Maccabi and four for Kiryat Shmona, and all have been converted. That has been bettered only in clashes against Ashdod SC where all 13 penalties have been converted.
The match will be held on February 16 and it corresponds to the date last year when Maccabi also hosted Kiryat Shmona, although a year ago it was in Netanya, where Maccabi won 3-0. It is the 14th time that year after year, Maccabi meet the same opponents on the same date.
