Week after week, Beitar Jerusalem grabbed thirds, fourths and even one fifth, but the bad defense of the yellow-blacks from the start of the season is not the defense that will come up tonight against the champion and leader of the table, Maccabi Haifa.
Statistically, Yossi Aboxis' team is still considered the worst defensive team in the league, with 19 interceptions.
But in the last three games, something changed in her defense, which kept a clean sheet in all of them.
How did the change happen?
For that you have to go back - to the summer.
The team reached the opening round against Netanya only a few days after receiving all the approvals, passed into the hands of Barak Abramov and avoided collapse.
In Beitar's defense, Nathaniel Deloya played in goal, Hagai Goldenberg, David Hoja, Or Zahavi, Avishai Cohen and Max Grechkin in the back line.
A cycle later it was Or Zahavi and Ofir Kariaf who started in the center of defense.
In these two games, Beitar conceded nine goals - four from Netanya and five from Po'el B.S.
By the way, some of those players who played at the beginning of the season, such as Zahavi, Goldenberg and Hoxha, may find themselves out of the team in January.
In those days, they worked in the capital to find a senior stopper, and after the humiliation against BS, they managed to add Josua Machias, who played in the team last season. One of the main reasons for the signing of the Venezuelan stopper was his cooperation with Oral Degani, and the fact that he does not need time to acclimatize and knows the defense well.
Yossi Aboxis.
managed to restore, photo: Danny Maron
Degani recovered from injury and started in the lineup together with Machias against the Nes Ziona section.
The professional team also decided to make a change between the rafters, and gave the credit to Itamar Israeli instead of Nathaniel Deloya.
The result?
The team defeated Nes Ziona and kept a clean sheet.
But then the injuries to Max Grechkin and Oral Degani occurred, and again Aboxis was forced to improvise - once Amit Cohen as a left back, once Avishai Cohen as a left back, and again Or Zahavi as a stopper.
The defense continued to absorb, and the Jerusalemites hurried to borrow Uri Dahan from Maccabi Haifa - but he was also not fit to play, after not playing for almost an entire season.
Beitar continued to absorb in every game. "You would give two against Raina, but get three.
In every game we conceded at least two goals," they recalled in the capital. Aboxis got into the thick of things, began to work more and more with the defense team and sent a clear message to the players: "You can't keep conceding this amount of goals, the key is a strong defense."
Then two significant things happened: Terzi Toma began to integrate into the back midfield instead of Aviel Zargari, and suddenly Beitar was less soft in the center of the field; but the more significant change was the return of Degani to the center of the defense alongside Mahias in the game against Ironi KSH.
Starting with that game - Beitar's defense looks completely different.
Degani and Miass bring a lot of experience and confidence to the defense, and all of Beitar's points this season were scored with the two stoppers in the lineup. Also, out of six games of this duo together - in four of them the team did not score at all.
Will it be enough against Omar Azili and Charon Sherry?
Depends on who you ask.
"Obviously, the game depends more on Haifa, and they are a formidable team, but we can surprise," concluded a player in the capital.
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