The Under-19 team, Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv will play Anzhi Makhachkala in the second leg of first round UEFA Youth Champions League action on Wednesday 17:00 Israel time at the Ramle Stadium. After falling 3:2 in Russia, Guy Tzarfati’s squad will look to use their positive momentum and advance to the next round where they would face the winner between Maribor from Slovenia or Sigma Olomouc of the Czech Republic.

So far in Israel Youth Premier League action, Maccabi has a record of 5 wins, 3 draws and no losses, good for second place on the table and in fact the only defeat the U19’s have had this season was to Anzhi. The Yellow & Blue will look to advance to the second round with a victory over the Russians on Wednesday.

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Tzarfati looks ahead to Anzhi

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 2:1 Hapoel Raanana 2:1 (U19)
Just ahead of the return leg in UEFA Youth Champions League action against Anzhi Makhachkala on Wednesday, the Under-19 side defeated Hapoel Raanana on Matchday 8 of the Israel Youth Premier League. Eduardo Guerrero scored a late brace (82’ + 90’) thanks to assists by Omri Ram to move into second place and just one point off the top of the table Maccabi Petah Tikva. For the full Match Report Click Here.

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv 2:1 Ashdod (U16)
The Under-16 squad handed first place Ashdod their first loss of the season on Matchday 8. An Or Halevy goal and an own goal gave Eran Sassi’s side the win as he summed up the contest: “This was a good team effort with a lot of intensity, fight and cooperation between the players up front that gave us the chance to take a 2:0 lead. We gave up a goal during a ten minute period where we disappeared on the pitch but we made a number of substitutions and we took control of the game once more. When Ashdod tried everything they had, we played well on defense and we didn’t give them any opportunities to score.”

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv 2:1 Maccabi Haifa (U15)
The Under-15 team picked up the victory on Matchday 6 against Haifa as Ori David’s squad recorded the win thanks to goals by Oral Bahia and Oskar Gluch. “This wasn’t our best match but we still controlled the pace of play and we were very dangerous. We scored two nice goals and it’s always best when we can make some changes and work on things after a victory. I’m very proud of the guys.”

After an important win in league action against Hapoel Raanana, Maccabi “Shachar”will turn their focus on their upcoming UEFA Youth Champions League contest with Anzhi Makhachkala. The Yellow & Blue will face the Russian outfit in the second leg of first round action after falling 3:2 in the first leg on Wednesday. The winner of the tie will play the winner of the matchup between Maribor from Slovenia and Sigma Olomouc of the Czech Republic. Head Coach Guy Tzarfati looked ahead to the clash after the win over Raanana:

“To defeat Raanana in a comeback at the end of the match showed a lot of character and the type of players we have in the dressing room. It’s great that we were able to win the match and the feeling is great which is what I want the players to take into the Champions League contest on Wednesday.”

About the upcoming match:
“We haven’t concentrated yet on the match as we had league games but now we have a few days to prepare and get ready. We played well in the first leg, scored a couple of goals and created many chances. We made some mistakes that cost us and in these types of competitions you can’t make those mistakes. We have another match that we can make amends and when we left after the first leg we felt that we have a chance. We played well and the character that we brought will hopefully help us win the upcoming contest and that we can advance.”

Knockout contest:
“The players and staff all understand what a knock out match is and we are only concentrating on continuing on and winning the match. Many times a team takes advantage of the feeling of a win or go home match and do their utmost to continue on. Hopefully we’ll be able to do that as I believe in the players.”

Celebration:
“This is a celebration for the whole club and for the Maccabi Tel Aviv Youth Academy. There will be many fans and parents who will come and see the match and I hope that they will create a fantastic atmosphere. This will give the players and staff a huge boost and I can’t wait to see everyone on Wednesday.”

The Under-19 club hosted Hapoel Raanana on Matchday 8 of the Israel Youth Premier League as the young Yellow & Blue entered the contest in 3rd place with 4 wins and 3 draws. Raanana began the day in the 7th place with 3 straight draws.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI: Or Itzhak, Michael Chilaka, Amit Glazer, Alon Shtrozberg, Dan Lugassi, Nadav Nidam, Eduardo Guerrero, Yoav Hofmayster (C), Rave Assayag, Bar Cohen, Eyal Hen.

First Half
In the 8’ a through ball made it’s way to Assayag but his shot went over the goal while three minutes later the visitor’s had their first chance of the contest as Golan Beni took the ball in the box, but his attempt deflected off a Maccabi defender and went out for a corner. Beni had another opportunity in the 14’ but his attempt went out, while a minute later Chilaka sent the ball to Cohen but his attempt went over the bar. Four minutes later Cohen took a Lugassi pass and made it by two defenders, but his chance just missed the goal.

Guerrero had the ball in the 23’ but his shot was saved by Ariel Mesika, while 11 minutes later Hen took the ball on the right wing and sent it into the box to Cohen but his chance was again stopped by Mesika. Guerrero’s 35’ long distance opportunity missed the goal and just before the break Raanana’s Roie Levy’s attempt from inside the box was cleared to safety by the Maccabi defense as the match remained deadlocked at 0:0 after 45 minutes.

Second Half
The visitor’s received a penalty in the 47’ which Levy converted to give Raanana a 1:0 lead after Shtrozberg and a Raanana player tangled up in the Maccabi box and the referee awarded the spot kick. In the 63’ Tal Yagudaev, who had come on as a substitute took the ball in the middle of the pitch, moved forward towards the Raanana area, but his 20’ meter attempt missed the target. Three minutes later Guerrero found another substitute Gil Ben Shalosh at the top of the area but his opportunity missed the goal.

Following chance after chance, Guerrero found the back of the goal in the 82’ for Maccabi when Omri Ram went down the right side and crossed a beauty of a ball to the striker who put home the equalizer, 1:1. The Yellow & Blue pressed for a winner and almost found one four minutes later when Ben Shalosh’s chance was batted away by Mesika. However, as the match went into injury time, Guerrero put away another Ram cross to give Maccabi a 2:1 win and the 3 points.

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Raanana, 11:30 Ramle (U19)
Just ahead of the send leg against Anzhi Makhachkala in UEFA Youth League action on Wednesday, the Under-19 squad will host Hapoel Raanana on Matchday 8 of the Israel Youth Premier League. The young Yellow & Blue are in 3rd place just one point off the top of the table while Raanana finds itself in 7th with 3 straight draws.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv (U17) are off due to an International break for the European Championship qualifiers. Eliezer Ben Aharon’s squad has 5 representatives with the team.

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv – Ashdod, 9:00 Kiryat Shalom 1 (U16)
After getting back onto the winning track last week against Netanya, the Under-16 team host’s first place Ashdod on Matchday 8. The Yellow & Blue will look to keep up the positive momentum and hand the visitor’s their first defeat of the season.

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv – Maccabi Haifa, 10:30 Kiryat Shalom Synthetic (U15)
The Under-15 side host’s Haifa on Matchday 6 as they find themselves in 3rd place just two points off the top of the table. The Greens are in 11th place with a single victory.

Beitar Tubruk 0:2 Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv (U19)
The Under-19 squad got back onto the winning track with an away win at Tubruk on Matchday 7 of the Israel Youth Premier League. Goals by Rave Assayag and Tal Yagudaev sealed the victory for Guy Tzarfati’s side as they currently find themselves in 3rd place just one point off the top of the table. For the full Match Report Click Here.

Hapoel Beer Sheva 0:3 Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv (U17)
Eliezer Ben Aharon’s Under-17 team continued their positive momentum with a win on Matchday 8. Maccabi “Oded” is in 1st place with a five point lead after the victory in Beer Sheva. Shaked Navon scored a first half goal thanks to an assist by Shachar Rosen while Ben Moasayif stopped a penalty at the start of of the second half to keep the young Yellow & Blue in the lead. Tal Torjman doubled the score as Yali Lazar picked up the assist while Navon scored his second of the contest off an assist by Nehoray Bitton. Ben Eliezer summed up the important win: “We were able to record a victory at one of the toughest stadiums against a very good and aggressive opponent. The path to the championship goes through Beer Sheva and we bore down to take the 3 points home. Some of the players are drastically improving and that can be seen as six of them will be playing with the National Team with 4 of them being new. I want to wish the U17 National Team successful in the upcoming European Championship Qualifiers. We will be on break for the next three weeks, we will get back together and continue to improve the players and the club.”

Maccabi Netanya 1:3 Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv (U16)
The Under-16 team got back onto the winning track on Matchday 7 as goals by Ener Oshmandi and Aviv Peles helped the Yellow & Blue to the win. Head Coach Eran Sassi summed up the game, “We played an excellent first half and we had many opportunities which helped us to a 3:0 lead at the break. The pace of play moved down a notch in the second half and we allowed the opponent a number of dangerous chances. We’ll take the good things and look ahead.”

Beitar Jerusalem 0:1 Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv (U15)
The Under-15 squad recorded a win at Jerusalem on Matchday 5 of League play. Oskar Gloch scored the lone goal of the contest to keep the team in first place. Head Coach Ori David spoke about the win: “We won this match with a lot of character on a very tough pitch to play on. We handled the 50/50 chances very well and we had many chances near the goal that we didn’t take advantage of, but I’m very content that we played as one unit.”

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv visited Beitar Tubruk on Matchday 7 of the Israel Youth Premier League. The Yellow & Blue began the day undefeated and in 3rd place while the host’s were in 13th position with one league victory.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI: Or Itzhak, Michael Chilaka, Amit Glazer, Dan Lugassi, Tomer Mahluf, Ido Shachar, Eduardo Guerrero, Yoav Hofmayster, Rave Assayag, Bar Cohen, Eyal Hen.

First Half
In the 8’ Maccabi came close to finding the back of the goal when Cohen sent Assayag a nice through ball into the box but at the last second a Tubruk defender cleared the threat however, in the 17’ the host’s wouldn’t be so lucky. Left back Mahluf began by passing the ball to Assayag who took a slammed home the opening strike of the contest from the air into the corner of the goal for a 1:0 Maccabi lead.

Tubruk almost drew even three minutes later when midfielder Michael Shriki took a shot from the top of the box, but the ball got tangled up in the Maccabi defense while in the 22’ a Yellow & Blue counter attack saw Hen take a through ball and crossed it to Guerrero but the latter just missed the target. In the 25’ Beitar tried their luck to no avail and a minute later Itzhak made an brilliant save off of Netanel Morris who unleashed a blast from just 6 meters out.

Right halftime, Cohen sent the ball to Hen on the left wing, cut to the middle but his chance went out while a set free kick play by the host’s left Roie Amos all alone in front of the Maccabi goal but his attempt went out as the Yellow & Blue took a 1:0 lead into the break.

Second Half
Adi Vaknin tried to find the equalizer in the 49’ but Hofmayster was able to block the ball while three minutes later Cohen’s opportunity was cleared by Amos. In the 58’ Tubruk almost drew even but Morris’s header went over the goal and in the 65’ the visitor’s hit the bar off a dangerous free kick.

In the 70’ Tubruk again almost found the equalizer when Niv Alfi took the ball in the box and sent a shot that Itzhak saved to keep the score as is while five minutes later Omri Ram who had come in as a substitute for Maccabi sent the ball towards the goal, but the host defense cleared the threat. In the 77’ Ram again was at the center of attention when he took the ball in the middle of the pitch raced into the box and from a sharp angle took a shot on goal but Maoz the Tubruk keeper was the save.

Two minutes later substitute Tamir Glazer tried his luck from long distance to no avail but the rebound went to Gil Ben Shalosh who passed the ball to Cohen but his chance went out. In the 82’ Chilaka sent a through ball to Ben Shalosh but his attempt was taken care of my Maoz and three minutes later a pair of substitutes, Nadav Nidam and Tal Yagudaev teamed up for a chance but the latter’s attempt was blocked by Moaz. Just before the final whistle Yagudaev made no mistake when he put the ball into the corner of the Tubruk goal to wrap up a 2:0 Maccabi win.

Beitar Tubruk – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, 10:30 Netanya, Tubruk (U19)
After a midweek draw against Hapoel Ramat Gan, the young Yellow & Blue will look to get back onto the winning track away at Tubruk on Mathcday 7 of the Israel Youth Football League. Guy Tzarfati’s squad is in 3rd place while the host’s find themselves in 13th.

Last Week’s Youth Academy Action:

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, 10:30 Wasermil Stadium (U17)
The U17 squad heads to a tricky away tilt at Beer Sheva on Matchday 8 of League play. The young Yellow & Blue are at the top of the table while the southern side is in 7th after losing last match.

Maccabi “Rafael” Netanya – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 10:30 Netanya Shapira (U16)
The club’s Under-16 team visits Netanya on Matchday 7 of league action and sit in 7th place while the host’s are in 14th with a lone league win.

Beitar “Gadi” Jerusalem – Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv, 8:45 Bayit Vegan 2 Upper Synthetic Jerusalem (U15)
After a win last week, the U15’s head to the capital city on Matchday 5 and will look to continue their fine play against Beitar.

The Under-19 squad hosted Hapoel Ramat Gan on Matchday 6 of the Youth Premier League. The young Yellow & Blue entered the contest in 2nd place and undefeated whole Hapoel Ramat Gan were in second to last place on the table with one win.

Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI: Or Itzhak, Michael Chilaka, Alon Shtrozberg, Dan Lugassi, Tomer Mahluf, Ido Shachar, Mufleh Shalata, Yoav Hofmayster (C), Bar Cohen, Tal Yagudaev and Eduardo Guerrero.

First Half
The Yellow & Blue began the match strong and in the 2’ left back Mahluf received the ball on the left wing but sent his shot out while 7 minutes later, Ramat Gan tried their luck when Hod Mesika’s long distance chance went over the goal. In the 10’ Shachar’s shot also went over the bar.

Maccabi continued to attack and in the 27’ Hofmayster took the ball on the left wing and sent a gorgeous cross into the box, but Guerrero couldn’t get to the ball in time as it went out. A minute later Cohen was able to get the ball over the Ramat Gan defense but Shachar’s acrobatic shot from the air was saved when Yuval Sadeh was just able to get his fingertips on the ball to send it to safety. In the 37’ Mesika’s opportunity went out as the half ended goalless.

Second Half
In the 50’ Cohen’s free kick went by the post while five minutes later, the same Cohen sent a through ball over the defenders and Shalata was able to get a foot on the ball, however, the ball sent over the bar. Tzarfati’s squad had a great chance to score when Cohen again placed a perfect through ball to Yagudaev who sent it to Guerrero it his opportunity went out.

As the match headed into the 68’, Mahluf sent Guerrero a fantastic ball who in turn handed it off to Rave Assayag who had come on as a substitute, but couldn’t get his foot on the ball. Two minutes later Cohen’s free kick hit the post and in the 75’ the Yellow & Blue were reduced to 10 men when Shtrozberg was issued a straight red card as he stopped a Hapoel Ramat Gan player as he made his way towards the goal

In the 80’ a long range shot almost beat Itzhak, but the shot stopper was just able to deflect the ball off of the post and it went out for a corner. Ten minutes later as the match wound down, Asaf Hershko who had come on as a substitute had a chance from long range but the ball went out as the side’s split the points in a a goalless draw.

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Ramat Gan, October 9th, 18:00 at Ramle (U19)
After falling to Anzhi 3:2 in Russia in UEFA Youth Champions League play, Guy Tzarfati’s squad will return to Israel Youth Premier League action on Tuesday on Matchday 6 against Hapoel Ramat Gan.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Bnei Sakhnin, 11:00 PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom (U17)
After a midweek 6:3 win over Beitar Jerusalem the Under-17’s return home to face Bnei Sakhnin on Matchday 7 of League play. The Yellow & Blue are in first place while the visitor’s sit in 10th.

Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv – Beitar Tubruk, 9:00 PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom (U16)
Beitar Tubruk pays a visit to Maccabi’s Under-16 squad on Matchday 6 as they’ll look to get back onto the winning track. A victory will move the Under-16 side ahead of Tubruk on the table.

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv – Sektzia Nes Ziona, 8:30 PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom (U15)
After a midweek 3:3 draw against Kiryat Gat, the Under-15 team will look to get back to their winning ways at home on Matchday 4 of league action. Nes Ziona currently finds themselves in last place with 3 losses in as many games.