A trio of Israeli soccer teams played in UEFA Conference League qualifying over the weekend with mixed results, as Beitar Jerusalem picked up a late victory, Maccabi Haifa drew, and Hapoel Beersheba lost in second-round first-leg qualifying action.
Beitar Jerusalem slipped by Sutjeska 2-1 thanks to a late Omer Atzily goal to hand the yellow-and-black the first-leg conquest.
Balsa Toskovic headed home the opening goal after Ori Dahan coughed up the ball right by the Beitar box to give the Montenegrin hosts a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute. However, Barak Itzhaki’s squad came right back the other way, and within a few minutes leveled the score at 1-1, as Yarden Shua nodded in a Dor Micha cross from inside the area. With Beitar pushing for a winner late in the second half, Atzily headed in a Timothy Muzie ball to take a 2-1 score into the home second leg next week, which will be played at the Stadionul Ilie Oana in Ploiesti, Romania.
“We didn’t expect it to be an easy game,” Itzhaki said following the game. “I was here with Maccabi Tel Aviv a few years ago – we struggled and ended up with a goalless draw with 10 players. I knew it would be difficult, and it’s not easy to play on the road. I’m happy that even though we were behind quite early, we were able to turn the score around and come away with a victory. Sometimes we like to underestimate rivals like this, but the games are tough in the Conference League. There are no favorites, and of course you play on a rough field like this. The result was positive, and we have a good lead going into the second match.”
Maccabi Haifa played to a 1-1 draw with Torpedo-Belaz in a game that was held in Szombathely, Hungary.
After nearly a goalless first half, Abdoulaye Seck pounded home the ball in the box to give the Greens a 1-0 lead deep into first-half injury time. But just minutes into the second half, Kirill Premudrov hammered the ball past Haifa keeper Georgiy Yermakov to knot the game up at 1-1, as the two sides will head into the second leg in what will be a Haifa home match in Kisvárda, Hungary.
Hapoel Beersheba fell to AEK Athens 1-0, as Filipe Relvas headed home the lone goal of the match off a corner kick to give the Greek side a slim lead ahead of the second leg, which will be the Southern Reds’ home game to be played in Debrecen, Hungary.
Maccabi Tel Aviv
Maccabi Tel Aviv, which drew 1-1 at Pafos in second-round Champions League qualifying, will play the return leg on Wednesday at the TSC Arena in Bačka Topola, Serbia, as the yellow-and-blue look to advance to the third round of qualifying, where it will face the winner of Dynamo Kyiv and Hamrun Spartans.
The Ukrainian side will head into their second leg holding a 3-0 lead, and should Maccabi not advance to the next round of Champions League qualifying, it will drop down to the third round of Europa League qualifying, where it will face the loser of this same matchup.
Over in Israeli league Toto Cup preseason tournament action, Hapoel Jerusalem blanked Hapoel Petah Tikva 1-0, as 16-year-old Israel Dappa scored the lone goal of the match when he headed home a Guy Badash ball in the 44th minute.
“This was a good chance to get to see the players in action,” Jerusalem bench boss Ziv Arie said. “It’s an opportunity to make mistakes as well as improvements ahead of the season. We had a very good training camp, and in reality the results in these games don’t really matter that much – it’s what I see from the players that does.”
“This was a very even game,” Petah Tikva coach Omer Peretz explained. “We had a bunch of chances to score, but we couldn’t put the ball in the back of the goal.”
Badash, who assisted on the goal, added: “This was a very tough game against a team that was very prepared tactically. But we took advantage of the chance that we had, and I’m happy that I was able to contribute to the goal.”
Maccabi Netanya and Ashdod sc played to a 1-1 draw, as Wilson Harris scored in second-half injury time to split the points for the hosts at the Netanya Stadium.
After a goalless first half, Emmanuel Agyei found the back of the goal in the 57th minute to give the port city side a 1-0 lead. However, Amit Cohen sent Harris a terrific ball that he headed home to knot the game up at 1-1 in the 93rd minute, as each team took a point.
“We are still looking to bring in a number of high-quality players,” Netanya Coach Yossi Abukasis began. “We lost some very good players over the summer, so we need to find others to replace them. I’m optimistic, and I know that it will take some time, especially as there is new ownership coming into the club. I want to sign some good players so that we will be a better team than last season.”