Ivitch: "We have to be patient with Cohen. It's not easy to choose 18 for the squad"

The Maccabi Tel Aviv coach referred to the situation of the acquisition from Pisa ("we are careful with him"), the ability of Dor Peretz ("he will return to his form") and the deep squad: "It is not easy to leave six players out."

Yeni is back to full training

Raanan Baranovski

13/10/2022

Thursday, October 13, 2022, 09:38

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Summary: Maccabi Tel Aviv - Hapoel Tel Aviv 0:3 (Sport1)

Maccabi Tel Aviv will play an away game on Saturday against Bnei Sakhnin at the Doha Stadium (8:15 p.m., Sport4).

According to the training held yesterday afternoon, it seems that all the players of the squad are fit, including Oskar Gloch who was replaced at the end of the derby due to twin muscle cramps, but has since returned to full training.

Sharan Yeni, who is recovering from an ankle injury, also had a full training session with his friends yesterday.

Absent from the derby, now back to training.

Sharan Yeni (Photo: Ariel Shalom)

The one who is not expected to be included in the squad for Sakhnin, is the midfielder Yonatan Cohen, who continues to work personally according to a special training program that was adapted for him to get him in full shape.

Cohen, who was acquired by the Yellows on the day the transfer window ended about two weeks ago, arrived in Israel after an injury and after not training for over a month with his friends in Pisa, Italy, from where he arrived in Israel.

"Every game is important, especially when you play in the derby and especially when you come after losing points in the previous game," said coach Vladan Ivic referring to the victory over the Reds in the derby.

"We prepared ourselves well for a difficult game and I think we deserved the victory. We were the better team on the field, more organized, we played attacking football from the first moment and that's how we got what we fought for."

The Serbian again referred to his squad and the difficulty he has in deciding on the lineup they will start and even the 18 that will be dressed for each game: "When you train 24 players, work with them in every training and when you only have one factory where you play, it is definitely not easy to choose 18. We prepared ourselves for a different situation, but in the end we were left without Europe and at the moment we have to give treatment and attention to each of the players regarding their ability and quality. They are all quality players, but in the end I can only choose ten plus a goalkeeper in addition to the substitutes, so when you only play one game a week It's not easy to choose the squad and leave five or six players out."

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Follow him carefully.

Yonatan Cohen (Photo: Maor Alxalsi)

Ivić was asked if he was satisfied with the squad he currently has and replied: "I am satisfied with the squad we have, with the quality of the players I have and what they show me every day, not only in games. I have often said that we lack balance in the squad and those who understand football understand what I mean when I say Says we lack balance, but I don't want to get into that again. We work hard every day to improve the ability of the players individually and also to improve our ability as a team."

The Serbian was asked if Yonatan Cohen will be included in the squad for the game in Sakhnin and answered: "I still don't know. We follow him every day. Don't forget that Yonatan arrived here from Italy after a month without training with a team and after he worked there alone. We also know that he did not play last season, Similar to Dor Peretz, who was also in Italy and didn't play much. It's hard for me to even explain to you, because you might not understand, how significant it is for a player who hasn't played for almost a whole year. Therefore, they have a long way to go and a lot of work to get back to the form they were in before. This It's definitely not easy. We brought both of them because we believe they will return to their good form as soon as possible. Dor is already on his way to doing it and has already played quite a few games, but with Jonathan we have to be patient, also because of the injury he had and we have to follow him carefully ".

"Those who understand football understand what I mean."

Ivitch on the balance in the squad (photo: Maor Alxalsi)

The coach also commented on his game plan for Sakhnin: "We are meeting a very high-quality team, a very tough team and they have qualities. They have an experienced coach and we know what awaits us there. This is a team that will come and be in focus from the first moment until the final whistle of the game. This is not by chance that they are in a good place in the table and they deserve to be there. We prepare ourselves accordingly, we know what game awaits us and we will have to be focused, because this is perhaps one of the most difficult games we have had since the beginning of the season."

Finally, the coach was asked whether the transitions of Maccabi Haifa, from the record of the Champions League to the league games here in Israel, will have an effect on the championship race: "It is definitely difficult to play in the league after a game in Europe, for any team. Although we are without Europe and are only preparing for league games, it is clear that these transitions Difficult, especially after you play in the biggest stadiums in the world and immediately after that you have to prepare yourself for a game in a completely different atmosphere, so it's definitely not easy."

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