Eran Zahavi whose penalty in the dying seconds of the first half completed Maccabi’s comeback on the way to a 2-1 victory over Hapoel Jerusalem at Bloomfield, said at the end of the game: “Before heading for the Semi Final of the Cup it was important record a victory” Zahavi said, “Our form wasn’t the best but we played matches before when we played amazing but didn’t take the three points – this time it was the other way round. We didn’t play poorly, we could have scored another two or three more goals in the first half and make our lives easier.”
The 35-year-old who scored his 20th league goal and 26th in all competitions added: “One should know how to kill off matches like that and then rest with the ball. We are struggling to do so and then continue doing things at a more simple and lighter energy. I hope we could manage to improve that.”
Zahavi, who played upfront alongside Dor Turgeman, said of the young striking partner: “He had a good game, he ran a lot, worked very hard and created some good chances, played well with the ball and well without it. Dor still has plenty to improve but he has an amazing potential. If he keeps on working hard I am convinced he could help us in the future.”
Ahead of Wednesday’s State Cup Semi Final against Beitar Jerusalem at Sammy Ofer stadium, Zahavi said: “Every title is important for Maccabi Tel Aviv. We are out of the (league) title race so the State Cup is the only trophy we are left to fight for. We really want it and will do everything to try and win. But we have no intentions to look too far ahead, as our sights or on Wednesday, which will have a totally different atmosphere than what we had here tonight. Wednesday will be a completely different story.”
