The Israeli Premier League is officially back after four weeks of coronavirus break.
The league resumed last week with a match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Be'er Sheva. At the weekend, the first full matchday was played, with three matches that made an exciting comeback.
A Tight Championship Race
The reigning champions, Maccabi Tel Aviv, is stuck in a complicated situation. On the one hand, they perform well in the Europa League with 6 points after two matches. On the other hand, they haven't won in their first three league matches. Their opponents tonight, Maccabi Haifa, which is considered to be one of the title contenders this season. Last week, Maccabi Haifa dealt with another issue – their historic partnership agreement with Al-Ain.
Maccabi Haifa stroke twice in two minutes. It began in the 7th minute when Nikita Rukavytsya assisted Tjaronn Chery. One minute later, Rukavytsya was in the scorer position, and Maccabi Haifa was in an early 2-0 lead. Maccabi Haifa kept the dominance in the first half, but Eduardo Guerrero scored in the 38th minute for Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Maccabi Tel Aviv manager, Giorgos Donis, has tried to look for solutions to take the lead back. One of the players he subbed in, Yonatan Cohen, has done the job and tied the match in the 42nd minute. Both teams have tried to look for the winning goal, but the match was ended with a 2-2 draw.
For Maccabi Haifa and Maccabi Tel Aviv, it was only the first step in their race for the title, which will be more interesting than in the last seasons.
What About The Domestic League?
After their away defeat against Nice, Hapoel Be'er Sheva played against Bnei Sakhnin, that was supposed to be an easier opponent. Bnei Sakhnin had turbulent weeks after most of the squad was tested positive for coronavirus. In their last match before the break, they have been thrashed 7-0 by Maccabi Netanya. Moreover, Bnei Sakhnin appointed Nisso Avitan as their new manager during the break.
Although Be'er Sheva was the clear favourite, surprisingly, Bnei Sakhnin was much better in the match. Gaëtan Varenne scored the first for Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the 15th minute, but the lead didn't last too long. Moti Barshazki in the 24th minute and Osama Khalaila in the 35th minute made an upset, and Bnei Sakhnin took the lead.
Hapoel Be'er Sheva tried to find the equalizer but found a combination of weak attacks and saves by Sakhnin's goalkeeper, Rami Hamadeh. Only in the 94th minute, Hapoel Be'er Sheva equalled. Josué crossed the ball, Jonathan Agudelo tipped it to Varenne, and the Israeli-French player scored his second tonight. The VAR check made everyone anxious, but the goal was allowed.
The 2-2 draw, in the end, will make Hapoel Be'er Sheva think a lot before their next match in the Europa League, against the strongest side in the group, Bayer Leverkusen.
The Political Tie
In the past, the matches between Hapoel Tel Aviv and Beitar Jerusalem were the main political clash of Israeli football. The socialists club against the right-wing club. Even if the political tensions are less dominant nowadays and the teams are no longer in the championship race, this rivalry is still drawing attention.
The first half didn't have many memorable moments until the last minute. Hapoel Tel Aviv made a late chance. The ball hit Beitar's defender, Uri Magbo. After a long VAR review, Hapoel Tel Aviv was awarded a penalty kick. Omri Altman, the team's prolific scorer, converted it successfully.
In the second half, Beitar Jerusalem found the equalizer. Michael Ohana has done it in the 59th minute. For Ohana, the goal was his official comeback. He was supposed to be one of the club's key players in the last season after he was bought from Hapoel Be'er Sheva. Unfortunately, he missed the whole previous season due to an ACL injury. The 25-year-old midfielder marked to be a hot prospect will try to get his last chance to fulfil his potential in the domestic league.
With a 1-1 draw and a point for each club, both teams will look for better results in the next weeks.
Beitar Jerusalem celebrates the equalizer against Hapoel Tel Aviv (Shaul Greenfeld/JSport)
