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Whoever laughs last laughs: Summary of Georgios Donis' first week at Maccabi Tel Aviv

General Ivitch has been replaced by a smiling coach, who spices up the training with amusement and builds on offensive football. Will it end in a loss of control like in the Jordi Cruyff era on the lines? The Money Time starts tomorrow against Riga (20:00, Sport1)

• Maccabi Tel Aviv in football
• Georgius Donis

Yaniv Tuchman

At the end of Jordi Cruyff's days as Maccabi Tel Aviv's coach, he admitted that he was wrong when he chose the way of openness against Maccabi Tel Aviv players. The truth is that Cruyff had no choice. He could not change his skin when he moved from the position of sports director to the position of coach. As the club's manager, he's already broken down - there was a hug from the players. The one who hears their complaints about the coaches, and especially about Lito Vidigal.

It ended up being a bit of a nuisance. When he became the coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv, he could not suddenly be tough. It is precisely this abyss that Vladan Ivic entered. Even so, he was a very strict and uncompromising coach, and when he was told that Maccabi Tel Aviv needed a figure of a general, he wore a bull. Maccabi Tel Aviv regained control of Israeli football under the Serbian, and his path succeeded.

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But in the evolution of a football club, Maccabi Tel Aviv probably should have landed Georgius Donis after Ivica. A week that the Greek coach works in Kiryat Shalom and it is certainly possible to announce that the players of Maccabi Tel Aviv are exposed to something else. It started with something as simple as their names. Donis had plenty of time to prepare for his arrival. He already knew five weeks ago that Jack Angelidis was rolling his name on his tongue, but two and a half weeks ago he realized that his chances of getting there were very high. When he started watching team games and learning the players, he also learned their names and when he got to his first two training sessions, he surprised the players when he knew how to name them. Some in first names, others in last names. It made a very big impression on the players.

The coach respected them and learned their names and roles. It made a very big impression on them. But it’s not just Donis ’lips that know how to pronounce the names, it’s also the smile and there’s a lot of it. Donis has not yet invited the players to Ozo at the bar, but it will happen. He spices up the training with a lot of fun. He can practice tactics through play and suddenly decide that he wants the players to gather in circles of five, in each circle, with his whistle and bounce a ball from one to the other on foot or head, sitting or standing, and whoever the ball in his circle falls on the grass should run around Of mid-August. The actors love it. Enjoy breaking a routine with exercises and games like jumping over cones with the ball between the calves and everything is accompanied by a challenge at the end of which the loser has to give some more annoying fitness exercises.

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Unlike Ivica, Donis dispenses powers and gives his assistants plenty of space. Ivica also greatly appreciated the team he brought and as evidence everyone went with him to Watford, but with the Serb in the end the full authority in every training remained with him and he set everything down to the smallest detail. Donis is ten years older than Ivica and carries with him more experience and confidence as a result and there is no problem in taking distance in a particular training and letting his assistants do all the work, while he watches and mostly impresses. It will usually have a notebook attached to it and he will write a lot of notes in it. His English is better than Ivica's and his explanations are more detailed, especially about what he asks for in each practice and about his method of play.

Donis came to a team that won two impressive championships, but failed in knockout games in Europe and here in the National Cup as well. He consulted as to the additions he could bring and understood mainly that there was room for improvement in the attack. If you have to bet, Daniel Tennenbaum will take a lot more balls out of his hair next season, but Donis will aim for the attacking game to be much more productive. It seems that in his worldview it is better 2: 3 over 0: 1. That the crowd at home and later in the season, perhaps in the stadium, will enjoy the form of the game more and especially the experience.

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The initial impression of the players at the end of the week is very positive. If the Maccabi Tel Aviv players forgot a bit about Ivica's toughness, they had Patrick Van Leven in the training camp and shortly after, so as not to forget what a rigid framework is. Donis has opened the window and also the door to a more permissive and considerate world and the test of Maccabi Tel Aviv players will prove that unlike their dispersal in the days of Cruyff, with the Athenian they also know how to enjoy the training week, but in game time they also know how to deliver the goods. The first test for the new road will be tomorrow against F.C. Riga.