Hapoel Haifa vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv
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Today’s free tip is in the Israeli Ligat Ha’al encounter between Hapoel Haifa and Maccabi Tel-Aviv.
As much as I enjoy the life and drive of Hapoel Haifa, I think that games like tonight’s are very tough for them. It’s their third outing in nine days, and they just don’t have a big enough squad for that, at least not without compromising with a loss of quality. They’ve already lost key attacker Zamir to injury recently, and I doubt he’ll be the last. It may not have dampened the spirit of Hapoel Haifa, but it has lowered their effectiveness.
Earlier in the season, I was excited by the return of Barsky to the club, and the signing of creator Maman. Both have been marvellous additions, as expected. However, Zamir is the more direct one in the team; he’s benefited the most from those two playing, and his absence is thus somewhat problematic against Israel’s best team. That’s especially true as they lack a good finisher at this moment in time, hence the signing of Turgeman lately. Turgeman can be that striker they’ve been missing since…well, since he left the club about three years ago now. For now though, he’s without one in five as his time in Austria has clearly damaged his confidence levels.
Subsequently, direct players from midfield are really important for Hapoel Haifa in order for them to score goals, and Zamir has been outstanding this season, scoring some truly wonderful goals. True enough, he still doesn’t really know when to release the ball to someone else or when to shoot, but when he gets it right, it’s usually very impressive. Nigerian forward Agade has come to life more in 2021, having adjusted to the Ligat Ha’al more since his summer move from Hapoel Jerusalem, but there’s still no natural goal-getter, which is why Zamir’s absence is particularly damning. I still see enough quality in this squad for them to not be overrun in midfield, but I’m not sure there’s enough for them to beat a lot of Ligat Ha’al teams right now, especially not Maccabi Tel-Aviv.
Another negative aspect for Hapoel Haifa is that Maccabi Tel-Aviv know how bad they are at defending. Therefore, there’s no reason for the in-form, title hopefuls to suddenly rush into an open game here. No, they can afford to be patient, waiting for opportunities that will almost certainly come, and with a big game against Beitar Jerusalem looming at the weekend, I believe that’s precisely what they’ll do in order to preserve their players’ fitness levels for that game. Maccabi Tel-Aviv have a big enough squad to rotate anyway, should they wish to, and it doesn’t seem to matter who they’re facing at the moment as they’re consistently delivering timely reminders to Maccabi Haifa as to how champions should play.
At this level, Maccabi Tel-Aviv control games really well. They seem to put far more effort into doing so on the road rather than at home too. All that really concerns me about tonight’s visitors in general is that they’re not quite as creative as usual. I know they’ve always been able to call upon officials to bail them out as and when required, but it feels like they’ve needed that more in 2021 – and that’s despite bringing Geraldes back to the club so that there’s a good attacking full-back on either side to compensate for the team’s lack of natural wingers.
They lack nothing as a driving force through midfield, not with Biton and Rikan there, and Ben-Haim finally remembering how to be a footballer. Blackman has disappointed this season, though – such a good player when he wants to be. There’s an absence of flair though, and it is hurting them, whether the form guide reflects it or not. Cohen has scored a lot of goals up front this season, and his injury problems throughout 2021 have not helped on the goal-scoring front, although Serbian target man Pesic is an able deputy. Unfortunately for the visitors, Cohen is still injured, and Pesic has Covid-19, leaving them short of options in front of goal with Shechter is beginning to look his age though, and with limited natural support, even Hapoel Haifa may frustrate Maccabi Tel-Aviv here, given their penchant for workmanlike displays.
Ultimately, I think this will be a very draining mid-week game for two teams that really don’t need yet another fixture. I suspect Maccabi Tel-Aviv will find a way to win it, but as opposed to the usual goal-fest that this match should bring, I’m more inclined to back under 2.5 goals at 4/5 at this moment in time.
Verdict: Under 2.5 goals at 4/5.
Thursday’s Thoughts
As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Belgian Cup:
Racing Genk vs KV Mechelen
Standard de Liege vs Club Brugge
Bulgarian Cup:
Botev Vratsa vs Chernomorets Balchik
Slavia Sofia vs Montana
Danish Superligaen:
SonderjyskE vs OB
Lyngby vs FC Midtjylland
Brondby vs Randers
English Premier League:
West Bromwich Albion vs Everton
Fulham vs Tottenham Hotspur
Liverpool vs Chelsea
Finnish Suomen Cup:
HJK vs KTP
Klubi-04 vs Gnistan
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
MS Ashdod vs Hapoel Kfar Saba
Beitar Jerusalem vs Bnei Sakhnin
Hapoel Haifa vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv
Italian Serie A:
Parma vs Internazionale
Portuguese Taca de Portugal:
SL Benfica vs Estoril
Spanish Copa del Rey:
Levante vs Athletic Club
Swiss Super League:
FC Sion vs Lugano
FC Zurich vs Luzern
Turkish Super Lig:
Alanyaspor vs Goztepe
Kasimpasa vs Trabzonspor
Fenerbahce vs Antalyaspor