Hapoel Kiryat Shemona 0:0 Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv (U19)
After a pair of wins to begin the season, the Under-19 side was held to a goalless daw at Kiryat Shemona on Matchday 3 of the Israel Youth Premier League. The Yellow & Blue missed a number of quality chances and couldn’t come back with the 3 points. For the full Match Report Click Here.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv 6:0 Hapoel Kiryat Shemona (U17)
The Under-17 squad picked up the win on Matchday 3 and moved into first place with 7 points. Goal scorers for Maccabi included, Shaked Navon (x2), Yonatan Imberg, Nehoray Bitton, Shachar Rosen and Tal Torjman. Head Coach Eliezer Ben Aharon summed up the victory: “Right from the start of the match the staff and players identified the weak points of Kiryat Shemona due to playing with 3 central defenders and we could have speed even more goals in the first half. The goals scored were quality strikes and a team effort. The squad is improving from match to match and the key point in this contest was that we didn’t concede a goal after giving up 6 over the last two matches. This shows the players that we can achieve our goals if we focus and put an emphasis on what we continue to learn. Next week, we play Ashdod and the goal is again to record a clean sheet and I believe if we don’t give up any goals we’ll win. Congratulations to everyone including those who didn’t dress and didn’t play, they’ve been true professionals.”

Maccabi Herzliya 0:3 Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv (U16)
After picking up a win last week over Hapoel Beer Sheva, the Under-16 side continued its positive momentum against Herzliya on Matchday 3. The young Yellow & Blue won their second match in a row and moved into 3rd place, just one point off the top of the table. The goal scorers included, Ener Oshmandi, Rotem Grama and Zin Shalata. Head Coach Eran Sassi spoke about the win: “This was a one sided game for us as the opponent didn’t even try to score and just defended their goal. It was difficult to break through their defense but we still were able to create some good scoring chances in the first half that didn’t result in any goals. However, we picked up the pace and made a number of substitutes in the second half which made all the difference in the match.”

Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv 13:0 Beitar Tel Aviv Ramle (U15)
The Under-15 team got off to a good start as Ori David’s squad defeated the Ramle based side in the State Cup. The Yellow & Blue found the back of the goal 13 times while also recording a clean sheet. Goals scorers: Oskar Glok (x5), Adir Cordoba (x2), Ari Marnstein (x2), Roie Nawi (x2), Ben Gold and Orel Baia. David commented on the win: “This was a typical game in the early stages of the State Cup and after we scored the first goal the game opened up as the players did what they needed to and followed directions. I’m very content with that.”

After the International break, the young Yellow & Blue visited Kiryat Shemona on Matchday 3 of the Israel Youth Premier League. Maccabi came into the contest with two straight wins while the host’s had picked up 1 point in their matches. Head Coach Guy Tzarfati gave new recruit, Panamanian Eduardo Guerrero his first start.

Starting XI: Daniel Peretz, Michael Chilaka, Amit Glazer, Yoav Hofmayster, Tomer Mahluf, Tamir Glazer, Mufleh Shalata, Ido Shachar, Eduardo Guerrero, Omer Barami, Eyal Hen.

First Half
The Yellow & Blue took control of the contest from the outset and in the 10’ Hen sent a cross to Guerrero but Kiryat Shemona keeper Nadav Zamir made a quality save. Ten minutes later Shalata stole the ball from the host’s defense, went by a pair of players but at the last second Kiryat Shemona cleared the ball from danger. In the 28’ Tamir Glazer tried his luck from long distance but the ball went out while in the 42’ the host’s had a good chance to get on the board but Itzhak Danan’s opportunity from outside of the box couldn’t find the target.

Just before the break, a mistake by the Yellow & Blue led to Basel Shaban going one on one with Peretz, but Chilaka was able to help out the Maccabi keeper in time and cleared the threat as the side’s went into halftime goalless.

Second Half
The first 20 minutes of the second half was played primarily in the midfield as neither side had a chance on goal. In the 70’ Shalata received the ball on the left side, went by a defender and handed it off to Mahluf but his shot was saved while the Tal Yagudayev’s rebound chance went over the goal.

Maccabi continued to dictate the pace but couldn’t muster up many chances. In the 90’ the Yellow & Blue appeared to have scored, but the goal was determined to have been offside. Just before the final whistle, Rave Assayag’s header missed the target as the match ended in a 0:0 draw.

Hapoel Kiryat Shemona – Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, 11:30 Kiryat Shemona (U19)
After opening up the season with a pair of victories, the Under-19 side will head to Kiryat Shemona on Matchday 3 of the Israel Youth Premier League. The Yellow & Blue will look to continue their positive momentum against a side who has earned 1 point to date.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Kiryat Shemona, 10:30 PenguinPickUp Training Ground Kiryat Shalom 1 (U17)
The Under-17 squad will host Kiryat Shemona at the PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom on Matchday 3. The young Yellow & Blue have 4 points after their first two matches while the visitor’s have yet to pick up a point.

Maccabi Herzliya – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 8:30 Herzliya Country Ran A Field (U16)
Following a win over Hapoel Beer Sheva last week, the Under-16 team will look to take the points at Herzliya on Matchday 3 as the host’s defeated Ironi Nesher last week.

After winning their domestic league championship last season, Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv, the Club’s Under-19 team took part in the UEFA Youth League draw. The young Yellow & Blue will face FC Anzhi Makhachkala from Russia in a two legged tie and should Guy Tzarfati’s squad advance they will play the winner of the match between Sigma Olomouc (CZE) v Maribor (SVN).

The first leg against Anzhi will take place in the city of Astrakhan on October 3rd, while the return leg will be played at the Ramle Stadium on October 24th. Should Maccabi advance the next round tie against either Sigma or Maribor will take place on November 7th away and on November 28th at home.

The Youth Department Director Guy Zukerman said: “It’s not a simple draw and it will be a difficult trip to get to the away match in Russia. From a professional side, I’m certain that we will be able to stand up to them and advance. In terms of the second draw should we advance, I’m sure that we will also be able to compete and continue to move along in the competition.”

“It’s always an incredible experience to be a part of the Champions League,” Zukerman continued. “I recall that when we participated in the group stages a few seasons ago, it was quite a wonderful experience. And now to be a part of a draw with some of the top youth departments in Europe, is also something extra special and gives us a tremendous amount of energy, respect and honor. I hope that we will also be able to honor the club with our performance on the pitch.”

Domestic Champions path guide

This path involves the domestic youth champions of the 32 best-ranked associations in the 2017 UEFA association coefficient rankings (the same rankings used to decide access to the 2018/19 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League).
Vacancies in the domestic champions path (because a club is instead eligible for the UEFA Champions League path, for example Atlético and Inter) are filled by the domestic youth champion of the next best-ranked association (in the above cases, Moldova and Iceland).
Chelsea, who won this competition in 2014/15 and 2015/16 but lost last season’s final to Barcelona, enter this path.
Two-time semi-finalists Anderlecht keep up their record of entering all six editions.
Debuts: AEL Limassol, Anji, Bohemians, FC Admira, Hamilton Academical, Hertha Berlin, Illés Akadémia, Lech Poznań, KR, Montpellier, Septemvri Sofia, Signa Olomouc, Žilina.

Road to Nyon

Play-offs
In the draw on 17 December, the eight Domestic Champions path survivors will be drawn at home to the eight UEFA Champions League path runners-up in one-off ties to be played on 12/13 February to decide the eight remaining round of 16 berths. The other eight places are taken by the UEFA Champions League path group winners.

Dates
Play-off draw: 17 December
Play-offs: 19/20 February
Knockout draw (round of 16 onwards): 22 February
Round of 16: 12/13 February
Quarter-finals: 2/3 April
Semi-final: 26 April, Nyon
Final: 29 April, Nyon

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC reached an agreement with UD Universitario of Panama for the loan deal of 18 year-old striker Eduardo Antonio Guerrero Locano who impressed during a three week trial at the club.

Maccabi’s Performance Director, Patrick van Leeuwen, told the club’s website: “Eduardo Guerrero is a player we have had training with our youth team for over 3 weeks now and left a very good impression. We think that he is a perfect match to the playing style we request from our players at Maccabi and Eduardo’s further development at the club is something we look forward to. Welcome Eduardo and good luck”.

Guerrero made his name on the international stage as he scored 4 goals for Panama U17’s in the CONCACAF qualifying campaign which wasn’t enough to see his country reach the U17 World Cup. Having made his full international debut for the Panama senior side in a friendly against Granada, Guerrero will aim to lead his country to the U-20 World Cup in Poland.

After a season opening win at Bnei Sakhnin last week, the Under-19 side hosted Hapoel Hadera on Matchday 2 of the Israel Youth Premier League at the Ramle Stadium.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati’s Starting XI: Daniel Peretz, Michael Chilaka, Alon Shtrozberg, Amit Glazer, Tomer Machluf, Tamir Glazer, Mufleh Shalata, Yoav Hofmayster, Rave Assayag, Omer Barami, Eyal Hen.

First Half
The young Yellow & Blue opened the match well and took control of possession early on. In the 5’ Maccabi had their first opportunity as a Shalata free kick made its way to Hen but his shot missed the target while four minutes later Tzarfati’s squad began an attack down the left wing. Hen and Machluf exchanged passes as the latter crossed the ball into the box but Assayag’s header went out.

In the 10’ Hadera’s chance went by the post while over the next quarter hour both sides didn’t come up with any dangerous opportunities. Hofmayster took the ball in the midfield in the 25’ and went by a pair of Hadera players but his attempt went over the bar, however, two minutes later Maccabi found the back of the goal. Tamir Glazer sent the ball to Barami who beat the Hadera keeper Ofir Abarbanel to give the Yellow & Blue a 1:0 lead.

Tzarfati’s side continued to press and in the 28’ they almost doubled their advantage but Shalata’s chance went out while his 37’ attempt was saved by Hadera keeper. Peretz needed to be sharp right before the break as visiting striker Shado Godfrey’s opportunity was saved by the shot blocker as Maccabi took a 1:0 into halftime.

Second Half
The Yellow & Blue began the half pressuring Hadera and their efforts paid off when Assayag’s shot beat Abarbanel for a 2:0 Maccabi lead in the 52’. Godfrey looked to pull a goal back for the visitor’s in the 64’ but his attempt just went by the post and four minutes later David Daoudi’s long range strike hit the post and went out.

In the 80’ a pair of Maccabi substitutes, Bar Cohen and Gil Ben Shalosh almost added the third goal but the latter’s attempt also went off the post while Tal Yaguayev went down the left side and beat his defender but Abarbanel was again up to the task. As the match began to wind down, Ben Shalosh’s chance went over the bar in the 89’ and a nice defensive play by Amit Glazer helped Maccabi “Shachar” to the clean sheet and a 2:0 win.

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv – Hapoel Hadera, 16:00 Ramle (U19)
After picking up a win at Bnei Sakhnin in their season opener, the Under-19 side will play their first home match when they welcome Hapoel Hadera to the Ramle Stadium on Matchday 2 of the Israel Youth Premier League.

Beitar Tubruk – Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, 16:00 Netanya Tubruk (U17)
The Under-17 club heads to Tubruk on Matchday 2 after recording a win last week at home against Bnei Yehuda. The host’s enter the contest after falling to Hapoel Tel Aviv on Matchday 1.

Maccabi Haifa – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, 10:30 Haifa Kesef Lower Pitch (U16)
The Under-16 side will begin league play when they visit Maccabi Haifa on Matchday 1 as the new Head Coach Eran Sassi will look to get the seasons off to a good start.

Bnei Sakhnin 1:2 Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv
The title defense began with a victory over Bnei Sakhnin. Omer Barami gave the young Yellow & Blue the lead while the host’s drew even. However, substitute Bar Cohen found winner as Maccabi took home the 3 points. For the full Match Report click here.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv 4:2 Bnei Yehuda
The Under-17 side also picked up an opening day win as Eliezer Ben Aharon’s side defeated Bnei Yehuda 4:2 at the PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom. Nehoray Bitton, Tal Torjman (x2) and Or Roizman scored for the Yellow & Blue. Ben Aharon: “It was important to open the season up with a win especially after coming from behind at the half. The match wasn’t played at a very high level, but that’s expected for the first game of the season. We will have to work hard to reach our goals with a lot of will, desire and belief. The players took a good step forward towards our goal and I know that I have something to work with here to continue to move ahead. Next week we visit Tubruk which is a tough pitch. We’ll be ready.”

The title defense is underway as Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv visited Bnei Sakhnin. The Club’s U19 side visited the Galilee as Head Coach started 8 veterans and 3 new players.

Starting XI: Daniel Peretz, Michael Chilaka, Alon Shtrozberg, Amit Glazer, Tomer Machluf, Tamir Glazer, Mufleh Shalata, Yoav Hofmayster, Rave Assayag, Omer Barami, Eyal Hen.

First Half
The first quarter hour saw both clubs feeling each other out as the side’s didn’t create many chances with play taking place primarily in the midfield. In the 16’ Sakhnin had the first opportunity of the contest as Muhammed Kahlayla’s shot from the left of the box hit the outside netting. Four minutes later Chilaka began the Maccabi attack from the right side, sent the ball to Barami who crossed it to Assayag but the latter couldn’t get to it in time as the ball went out.

Maccabi then took control of the contest as Assayag had a header chance that hit the post while just before the break, Mahluf sent a ball to Tamir Glazer who tipped the ball to Assayag but his shot went out as the half ended deadlocked at 0:0.

Second Half
Assayag stole the ball in the middle of the pitch in the 48’ as he sent the ball to Barami who passed it to Hen on the left side but the opposing keeper blocked the attempt. As Maccabi continued to press, the Yellow & Blue finally found the back of the goal. Tamir Glazer sent the ball to Shalata who handed it off to Barami who put it behind the keeper for a 1:0 lead.

Sakhnin then pressed to draw even but Adam Suad’s 56’ opportunity from long distance went over the goal, however a 61’ free kick was headed in by Muhammed Osman to even up the contest at 1:1. The host’s continued to pressure the Yellow & Blue goal but a Peretz save and a Shtrozberg clearance kept the score as is. In the 72’ Sakhnin again threatened Peretz’s goal but Osman’s attempt went over the goal.

In the 78’ Maccabi almost took the lead but Tal Yagudayev who had come on as a substitute hit the post. However in the 85’ Bar Cohen who also was introduced earlier into the match found the back of the goal with the winner to take the 2:1 opening day victory and the three points.

The 2018/19 season is about to get underway at the Maccabi Tel Aviv “Avi Cohen” Youth Academy and this Saturday both the Under-19 and Under-17 side’s will begin their respective title defenses. The U19s will play at Sakhnin (11:00) while the U17s will host Bnei Yehuda at the PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom (09:00).

Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv Under-19
Last season will be remembered for many years to come. The Yellow & Blue won the league championship with a 74.4% win rate while scoring 65 goals and conceding only 24.

Head Coach Guy Tzarfati will continue as the Head Coach while Nissim Dvash will serve as his assistant. A familiar face in Shura Uvarov is now the goalkeeping coach and has already begun working with the youngsters over the past month and a half. The side travelled to Bulgaria for a preseason training camp where they faced CSKA Sofia, Lokomotiv Sofia, Slavin Sofia and other local sides. After returning to Israel, the squad played the First Team’s of Beitar Shimshon Tel Aviv he Beitar Tel Aviv Ramle.

The squad:

• Players who remained from last season: Omer Barami, Amit Glazer, Tamir Glazer, Yoav Hofmayster, Eyal Hen, Roy Mann, Or Itzhak, Tomer Machluf, Daniel Peretz, Alon Shtrozberg and Mufleh Shalata.
• Players who were promoted from the Under-17 team: Rave Assayag, Shay Belhassan, Gil Ben Shalosh, Roie Benbenishti, David Dego, Asaf Hershko, Tal Yagudayev, Omer Itzhaki, Bar Cohen, Dan Lugassi, Guy Mizrahi, Nadav Nidam, Bar Netanel, Omri Ram has Ido Shahar.
• New players who joined the squad: Amit Yakov who returned from loan after a season and a half at Raanana and Michael Chilaka who came from Maccabi Kabilyo Jaffa.
• This season the squad will be comprised of players born in 2000 and 2001 with one player not born in those years, Neil Goldberg who returns from injury.

Players who departed the club:

• Prince Thomas who was loaned Hapoel Hadera’s First Team in the Premier League.
• William Agada who played on loan last season returned to his parent club, Hapoel Katamon.
• Netanel Peretz joined the First Team of Hapoel Marmorek.
• The following players are on loan at Beitar Tel Aviv/Ramle: Noam Cohen. Fadi Najar, Ran Vaturi, Tomer Altman, Junas Gabarin and Eylon Almog.
• Amit Mordechayev joined the Hapoel Raanana U19 side.

This Saturday (11:00) the Under-19’s will travel to Bnei Sakhnin where they will open the 2018/19 Israel Youth Premier League season.

Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Under-17
The Under-17 side will also begin their 2018/19 campaign under the direction of Eliezer Ben Aharon who will be at the helm for his third season while Jeffrey Yishai will serve as his assistant.

The team is comprised of players born in 2002 who were promoted from the Under-16 side. The U17’s will be defending the league title after winning 21 of 30 matches while scoring 111 goals.

Full squad: Yonatan Imberg, Nehotai Bitton, Omer Ben Basat, Itay Ben Hemo, Imri Berenholz, Niv Berkovich, Arik Gabish, Amit Hevroni, Tomer Yakubi, Rotem Itzkar, Yali Lazar, Yarin Mozen, Ben Mosaoyev, Michael Mor, Hadar Mor Yosef, Netanel Mtaeib, Roie Maayan, Shaked Navon, Guy Siviglia, Aleksey Sapir Navon, Itay Rada, Noam Rudnik, Shahar Rosen, Or Roizman, Tal Torjman.

This Saturday, the Under-17’s will host Bnei Yehuda at the PenguinPickUp Training Ground at Kiryat Shalom (9:00) for the season opening match.