It was no doubt a busy weekend at Bloomfield Stadium as both Tel Aviv soccer teams hosted the two clubs who are duking it out for the Israeli Premier League Championship.
The results of the pair of clashes that saw Hapoel fall to table leader Hapoel Beersheba 2-0 and Maccabi come up short 2-1 against Beitar should not come as much of a surprise.
In theory, both Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Tel Aviv had absolutely nothing to play for in the league, which already creates issues, as some players may not give 100% at this point of the season when there have been games every few days or so, and an injury or two is right around the corner.
Maccabi, Hapoel focus on cups while Beersheba eyes championship
For the Reds, European qualification has already been accomplished, and a win for their opponents would keep hated rival Beitar Jerusalem entrenched in second place. The yellow-and-blue may have no chance to win the league title, but it is going to challenge Hapoel Beersheba for the Israel State Cup in a little over a week, with the hardware being the ultimate goal right now for Maccabi Tel Aviv. If it means playing the starting lineup for only 60 minutes in the next league match, then so be it. Interim coach Kenny Miller is doing what is best for his team.
If it means that he will start a slew of bench players against Hapoel Beersheba Tuesday night, then so be it; his mission is not to help Beitar, but to help himself and his team. Beitar had its chance to help itself twice over the past week. It fell to Maccabi Haifa 3-0 and then drew 1-1 with Hapoel Beersheba after being in front 1-0, allowing the Southern Reds the opportunity to go back into first place.
At this stage of the season, there is no reason to think that anyone is going to do any favors for Beitar. It may still win out at Hapoel Petah Tikva on Tuesday night and then against Hapoel Tel Aviv at home to close out the season, but those six points won’t make any difference if Beersheba takes care of Maccabi Tel Aviv and then Maccabi Haifa, with both games being played at the friendly confines of Turner Stadium.
Final two games set the stage for a dramatic Premier League finish
Now that there are two games to go for both teams, it’s crystal clear that Barak Itzhaki will play his preferred lineup and not make any changes unless there is some sort of injury. He is going to run out the guys he trusts to give him the result Beitar needs, be damned the issue of fatigue and exhaustion.
Beersehba’s Ron Kozuk, on the other hand, has been making some lineup changes to ensure that his players are as fresh as can be, but right now, with two matches to go, it’s got to be all hands on deck, and whoever are the best players are the ones who have to play, even if they are running on fumes.
Usually in these situations, the teams that need the points are the ones who take them. But there is still a sliver of hope that Jerusalem will leapfrog Beersheba one more time, and that’s ultimately the beauty of sports as the championship heads right down to the wire.