Head Coach Jordi Cruyff had a full squad at his disposal including the new signings, Omer Atzily and Ofir Davidzada along with the National Team players who arrived at camp this week. Atzily made his Yellow & Blue debut in the Starting XI.

Maccabi put pressure on Spartak from the get go as Sagiv Yehezkel, Shlomi Azulay and Vidar Kjartansson had numerous chances early on. Azulay hit the post twice as Kjartansson pounced on the rebound of the second one to score in the 38th minute.

Ofir Davidzada made his Tel Aviv debut in the second half and in the 56th minute Atzily scored his first goal as he put away a rebound from 5 meters out to give the Yellow & Blue a 2:0 advantage. In the 90th minute, Aaron Schoenfeld joined the goal parade after he took a beautiful header pass by Yonatan Cohen and buried the ball behind the Slovakian side’s keeper for a 3:0 victory.

Barak Itzhaki’s 57th minute goal was the lone marker of the match notching the three points for Maccabi Tel Aviv and reducing the gap atop the table to five points. After a slow first half, the rains began and gave the Yellow & Bkue the extra push they needed to take home the victory.

Prematch
Sports Director Jordi Cruyff was again at the helm for the Yellow & Blue as they took on Maccabi Petach Tikva on Matchday 22 and had a Starting XI that included keeper Predrag Rajikovic along with defenders Eli Dasa, Eitan Tibi, Tal Ben Haim and captain Sheran Yeini. Gal Alberman was in his usual defensive midfielder position with Micael, Barak Itzhaki, Dor Micha, Tal Ben Chaim and Vidar Kjartansson rounding out the attack.

Available on the bench were keeper Daniel Lifshitz, Yuval Shpungin, Ramon Roma, Oscar Scarione, Avi Rikan, Marcelo and Eliel Peretz.

First Half
Both sides played very tentatively early on as the majority of the action was in the midfield with very few chances to be had. However, Rajikovic was called upon in the 24th minute to make a fabulous save off of a close opportunity by Guy Melamed after receiving the ball from Gidi Kanuk.

Petach Tikva had a 39th minute chance when Magbo delivered another fine pass to Melamed but his effort went out as the half ended goalless.

Second Half
As the rain teamed down in Petach Tikva, Uri Magbo steamed downfield towards the Maccabi goal, but his hard shot missed the target in the 49th minute. With both sides looking to breakthrough, it would be Maccabi to strike first.

In the 57th minute, Micha sent Itzhaki a wonderful ball just outside of the box as number 10 worked his magic from 16 meters out scorching the ball into the corner of the Petach Tikva goal for a 1:0 Yellow & Blue lead. Seven minutes later, Itzhaki attempted to return the favor to Micha but the latter’s opportunity was saved by Dani Amos while Ben Chaim fed Kjartansson the ball as the Icelander tried to get by the keeper himself but was denied by the shot stopper.

Two minutes later, Ben Chaim and Kjartansson teamed up once again, but the Icelandic striker’s chance just went by the post. Cruyff made his first substitute of the contest in the 71st minute as Eliel Peretz came on for goal scorer Barak Itzhaki and made his second move in the 81st minute Marcelo entered the game for Micael.

Three minutes later Maccabi made their third and final substitute bringing in Oscar Scarione for Micha as both of the last two subs picked up yellow cards before Alon Yefet blew the whistle to send the wet but happy Yellow & Blue fans home happy with a 1:0 win.

The Yellow & Blue only needed one goal to pick up the Derby victory as Vidar Kjartansson headed home the winner in the 8th minute via a Ben Chaim cross as Maccabi will now prepare for a Matchday 19 contest against Bnei Sakhnin next Sunday evening at the Netanya Stadium.

Sports Director Jordi Cruyff’s Starting XI was the exact same lineup that featured against Hapoel Raanana last Matchday and included keeper Predrag Rajikovic in goal with a defensive corps of Eli Dasa, Eitan Tibi, Egor Filipenka and Avi Rikan. Captain Gal Alberman was in his usual defensive midfield position along with Eyal Golasa and Yossi Benayoun while Tal Ben Chaim, Barak Itzhaki and Vidar Kjartansson played in front.

Available on the bench were Daniel Lifshitz, Haris Medunjanin, Oscar Scarione, Dor Micha, Sagiv Yehezkel, Tal Ben Haim and Nosa Igiebor.

First Half
Maccabi looked to take an early lead and they did just that in the 8th minute when Ben Chaim superbly crossed the ball into the box right to Icelander Kjartansson who put it behind Ariel Harush for the quick 1:0 lead.

Three minutes later, Itzhaki found Benayoun but number 51’s effort sailed over the goal while Ben Chaim found Kjartansson again in the box, however the striker’s header just went wide left of the goal.

With Maccabi controlling the tempo of the contest, Itzhaki had a marvelous chance in the 26th minute but Harush was up to the task and parried the ball away to keep the score as is. Eight minutes later Ben Chaim came dashing into the box from the left side but his sharp angle effort was just pushed out for a corner kick. Seconds later Shachar Hirsch went the other way for Hapoel, however his individual effort missed the goal wide right as the ball scooted out or harm’s way.

Both sides would not have many chances over the final minutes of the half as the Yellow & Blue went into the break ahead 1:0 after 45 minutes of action.

Second Half
Maccabi’s first chance came in the 53rd minute when Rikan found Kjartansson once again in the box but his header was just off the mark. In the 65th minute Hapoel went downfield after a Maccabi miss, but Hirsch came up empty again for the Reds as Rajikovic was in place to make the stop.

Cruyff made his first two substitutions of the match in the 67th and 75th minutes introducing Haris Medunjanin and Dor Micha in favor of Itzhaki and Benayoun respectively. After a hard collision between Golasa and Ben Reichert, number 23 exited the game and Nosa Igiebor entered in the 82nd minute.

Following 6 minutes of added time, Maccabi closed out the victory and collected three points as look ahead to next week’s Matchday 19 encounter against Bnei Sakhnin at the Netanya Stadium.

The Yellow & Blue visited Bnei Lod for an Israel State Cup Round of 32 matchup and got their campaign off to a fine start with a 3:0 win thanks to a first half brace by Vidar Kjartansson and a second half marker by Yossi Benayoun.

Sports Director Jordi Cruyff stood on the sidelines for the Israel State Cup Round of 32 contest and the Starting XI consisted of keeper Predrag Rajikovic with a defensive quartet of Eli Dasa, Eitan Tibi, Egor Filipenka, Avi Rikan. Dor Peretz, Haris Medunjanin and Yossi Benayoun manned the midfield while Sagiv Yehezkel, Vidar Kjartansson and acting captain Tal Ben Chaim provided the attack.

Available on the bench were Daniel Lifshitz, Dor Micha, Tal Ben Haim, Eliel Peretz, Barak Itzhaki, Eden Ben Basat and Nosa Igiebor.

First Half
Peretz tried to get Maccabi going early with a 4th minute shot that missed target while Amran Elkrinawi’s attempt one minute later was caught by Rajikovic. In the 9th minute Wail Marisat almost put Bnei Lod on the board first but Rikan brilliantly cleared the ball by heading it over the goal.

In the 17th minute Ben Chaim sent a dangerous cross in the box that was cleared by Emil Duko while Tibi’s bicycle kick attempt off the ensuing corner just went wide left of the goal. Two minutes later Peretz had a chance on goal but his header went over the bar to keep the match goalless.

However, it wasn’t goalless for long. In the 23rd minute Kjartansson took a gorgeous long pass from none other than the keeper Rajikovic and scored to make it 1:0 for the Yellow & Blue. The Serbian had dribbled the ball out of the box and found the Icelander streaking down the left side who buried his chance behind the Bnei Lod keeper.

If you thought that Kjartansson was done you were mistaken as he took a pinpoint perfect corner kick from Medunjanin and headed it home for a 26th minute 2:0 Maccabi advantage. Just prior to the break Ben Chaim’s 45th minute left side free kick whacked off of the bar as the whistle sounded.

Second Half
After almost a quarter hour of quiet, Dasa fed Benayoun a nice ball in the box that the veteran easily slotted home to give the Yellow & Blue a 3:0 lead in the 58th minute. Three minutes later Dasa himself almost added his name to the scorers list after taking a gorgeous pass from Yehezkel but the right back’s effort just skipped by the far left hand post.

In the 64th minute Maccabi made a double substitution as Dor Micha & Eliel Peretz entered the fray in favor of Haris Medunjanin & Tal Ben Chaim while in the 75th minute Eden Ben Basat was introduced for Kjartansson. Three minutes later Micha smacked the ball off of the bar while Yehezkel’s follow up hit the left post.

In the 89th minute, Yehezkel had another good chance to score but came up empty while Micha also also had an opportunity that was saved by the keeper. As the clock hit the 93rd minute, the referee blew the whistle to end the contest giving Maccabi an Israel State Cup Round of 32 3:0 win.

Oscar Scarione found the back of the Alkmaar goal in the first half while Eyal Golasa’s late match scorcher sealed the victory helping Maccabi Tel Aviv to its first Europa League Group Stage points. Robert Muhren drew AZ even in the 72nd minute but Golasa’s 82nd minute strike decided the contest.

Prematch
Head Coach Shota Arveladze’s Starting XI included Serbian keeper Predrag Rajikovic in goal with a back four of Eli Dasa, Eitan Tibi, Tal Ben Haim and Omri Ben Harush in front of him. Captain Gal Alberman was the defensive midfielder with Haris Medunjanin and Eyal Golasa beside him. Oscar Scarione, Tal Ben Chaim and Iceland striker Vidar Kjartansson played up front.

Second choice keeper Daniel Lifshitz along with Dor Micha, Egor Filipenka, Nosa Igiebor, Yossi Benayoun, Barak Itzhaki and Yuval Shpungin were all available on the bench.

First Half
With the match getting underway in Holland, the hosts looked to be on the board first as Derrick Luckassen hit the bar off of Illias Bel Hassani corner in the 4th minute while Scarione’s shot one minute later was blocked by the AZ defense. Rajikovic was called upon ten minutes later to make a fist save off of Bel Hassani hard effort to keep the match goalless early on.

However, it wasn’t goalless for much longer as Oscar Scarione found the back of the goal in the 24th minute to give Maccabi a 1:0 lead. Medunjanin sent the Argentinian a deep ball and he half volleyed it behind the Alkmaar keeper for the one goal advantage.

Ben Harush was issued a yellow card in the 35th minute as the score held up as is for the balance of the half with Maccabi taking a 1:0 lead into the break.

Second half
With Maccabi looking to double the score, it was AZ with the second half’s first chance as Bel Hassani’s 52nd minute effort was blocked. Just minutes after both Medunjanin and Tibi’s shots were also blocked, Ben Chaim’s ensuing corner kick came right to Kjartansson in the middle of the box but the Icelander’s scorcher was brilliantly saved by Sergio Rochet to keep the ball out of the goal.

Medunjanin picked up a 67th minute yellow card while Coach Arveladze made his first substitution of the match in the 69th minute introducing Dor Micha in favor of Ben Chaim. However, the changes didn’t stop AZ from drawing even in the 72nd minute when Bel Hassani’s pinpoint cross found Robert Muhren who headed home the ball to pull the hosts into a 1:1 tie.

With Maccabi looking for a bit more offense and a chance to find a winner, Arveladze made his second sub bringing in Nosa Igiebor for Alberman in the 79th minute. And some offense he would find via Golasa in the 82nd minute.

The midfielder laced a long range screamer into the top corner of the Alkmaar goal to take a 2:1 lead late in the game. Two minutes later the Head Coach made his last move introducing Egor Filipenka for the first half goal scorer Scarione.

Bel Hassani would have a couple of more opportunities for Alkmaar but it was not enough for the hosts as Maccabi Tel Aviv came away with the valuable 2:1 win and their first Europa League Group Stage points thanks in part to goals by Oscar Scarione and Eyal Golasa.

The Yellow & Blue earned three points on Matchday Two on two first half goals by Oscar Scarione and winger Tal Ben Chaim via penalty as Gadi Kinda was only able to cut the lead in the 40th minute. The players will now be on the international break as Matchday Three will take place in two weeks when Maccabi hosts Beitar Jerusalem at the Netanya Stadium.

Head Coach Shota Arveladze had Serbian keeper Predrag Rajikovic in goal with Avi Rikan, Eitan Tibi, Egor Filipenka and Eli Dasa in front of him. Captain Gal Alberman was back in the Starting XI while Haris Medunjanin and Oscar Scarione played beside number 6. Providing the attack was a trio of Dor Micha, Tal Ben Chaim and Barak Itzhaki.

On the bench was Haviv Ohayon, Eyal Golasa, Tal Ben Haim, Nosa Igiebor, Dor Peretz, Eliel Peretz and Yossi Benayoun.

First Half

Even before everyone settled into their seats at the Yud Alef Stadium, Maccabi sporting their new blue away kit was on the board. Scarione took a tremendous long pass from Itzhaki to come in from the left side and slot the ball behind the Ashdod keeper for the 1:0 lead in the first minute.

In the 7th minute Itzhaki himself had a terrific chance but skied his ball over the bar while a minute later Scarione almost picked up a brace but keeper Yoav Gerafi was in the right place to make the stop. As the match hit the 19th minute Ben Chaim swung a cross in from the left side to the middle of the box where Itzhaki’s header went wide right of the goal as Maccabi continued to look for their second goal on the evening.

However, it wouldn’t take them too much longer to find it as Ben Chaim was tripped up in the box after receiving a terrific pass by Scarione God for a penalty that number 11 easily slotted home to the bottom left of Gerafi’s goal for a 2:0 Yellow & Blue advantage. Alberman’s long range scorcher was collected by Gerafi in the 34th minute but out of nowheres Gadi Kinda capitalized on a Maccabi defensive error and out the ball behind Rajikovic to cut the lead to 2:1 in the 40th minute.

Ben Chaim almost put home his second of the match but his sharp angled shot went off the post and out as the referee blew the whistle to signal the end of the first half.

Second Half

With Ashdod looking for an equalizer they began attacking Maccabi and almost converted a pair of early second half chances but Rajikovic made sure to keep the score as is with two nice saves. Head Coach Arveladze made his first substitution of the evening introducing Tal Ben Haim in favor of Barak Itzhaki and moved to three central defenders in the back.

With the new formation in place winger Ben Chaim had a marvelous chance to increase the lead in the 56th minute but his effort went off of an Ashdod defender and out for a corner. In the 60th minute Nivaldo headed a ball back to the keeper that almost went into the goal, however Gerafi made it back in time to make the stop on the line.

Drazen Bagaric had two chances to draw Ashdod even in the 63rd and 65th minutes but Rajikovic made the save on the former while the latter was just wide right of the goal. Following a yellow card issued to Alberman, Arveladze made his second substitute of the match bringing in Nosa Igiebor for Dor Micha while Eyal Golasa was introduced for Haris Medunjanin in the 71st minute.

Bagaric again had an opportunity to tie up the match but his shot from the top of the box went over the bar and out in the 78th minute and Dasa was issued a yellow card in the 86th minute as play went back an forth with each side looking for a goal late in the match. However, neither club would find one as the Yellow & Blue remain perfect early on in the season winning 2:1.

Maccabi’s next match will be in two weeks due to the international break when they face Beitar Jerusalem at home.

The Yellow & Blue have now won their sixth consecutive season opener defeating Hapoel Kfar Saba 3:1 at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem on a header goal by Eden Ben Basat and a pair of goals by winger Tal Ben Chaim while Mavis Tchibota answered for the visitors.

Head Coach Shota Arveladze’s first ever Ligat Ha’Al Starting XI consisted of Serbian keeper Predrag Rajikovic in goal with a defensive quartet of Eli Dasa, Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi and Omri Ben Harush in front of him. Haris Medunjanin, Nosa Igiebor and Oscar Scarione featured in the middle while Yossi Benayoun, Eden Ben Basat and acting Captain Tal Ben Chaim provided the attack.

First Half:

The Yellow & Blue went on the offense right from the opening whistle but Mendunjanin’s 4th minute long range shot was collected by the Kfar Saba keeper Ran Kadosh and Ben Basat’s bicycle kick four minutes later from 11 meters out went over the goal by inches as the scored remained 0:0 early on.

In the 20th minute Medunjanin’s low effort just went wide right, while Kfar Saba’s Ran Itzhak had a chance in the 28th minute for the visitors. A burst of speed by Ben Chaim caught up to Ben Harush’s magnificent pass on the left side but Kadosh made a miraculous save to keep the match goalless in the 32nd minute.

Just before the stroke of halftime Maccabi got on the board through Ben Basat as number 9 headed home a Scarione rebound to give the Yellow & Blue a 1:0 lead as the teams went into the break.

Second Half:

Ben Basat led the charge to begin the final 45 minutes as his 15 meter scorcher was pushed over the bar at the last second by Kadosh as Maccabi searched for an insurance marker. However, they didn’t have to search to long and hard as Dasa was fouled in the box good for a penalty kick that Ben Chaim coolly slotted home for the 2:0 lead in the 58th minute.

Coach Arveladze made his first substitution of the evening when he introduced Eyal Golasa for Nosa Igiebor in the 65th minute and five minutes later his side added a third goal as Ben Chaim completed a brace. Oscar Scarione led the winger with a brilliant ball on the left side as number 11 placed a fantastic ball by Kadosh, off of the right post and into the goal for a 3:0 advantage.

Following a pair of Maccabi substitutions with Barak Itzhaki and Egor Filipenka replacing Scarione and Tibi, Kfar Saba’s Mavis Tchibota cut the Yellow & Blue lead to 3:1 on an easy shot from 5 meters out in the 78th minute. Ten minutes later Itzhaki attempted to get the goal back but he missed his tremendous opportunity while Benayoun’s screamer was stopped by Kadosh to keep the score as is to lead Maccabi to another season opening win.

The team will now prepare to fly to Croatia for the second leg of the Europa League Playoff Round against Hajduk Split as Maccabi hold a 2:1 advantage.