20:30 on Sport1: Glazer, Naor, and Grimberg in the Maccabi Haifa lineup for the derby
The Toto Cup gets underway: The goalkeeper makes a re-debut, and a midfielder not in the team's plans is placed in the center of defense due to Pedrao's injury. Four new additions at Hapoel Haifa.
After a disappointing season that left the team without a ticket to Europe, Maccabi Haifa opens the 2026/27 season tonight (Saturday, 20:30, Sport1) with a derby against Hapoel Haifa in the Toto Cup — a competition in which it has not played in the group stage since 2020/21. That was Barak Bakhar's debut season, and in the third round of Group A, he won 0:1 against Hapoel Haifa, then coached by Haim Silvas.
Omri Glazer, who was part of the green squad back then, has returned after five years and is making a re-debut with the captain's armband against the team against which he recorded the match that caused him to lose his place between the posts in his previous tenure. Yair Mordechai, the first signing of the summer and the leading scorer in the preparation matches, starts behind the young striker Adam Grimberg, with Cedric Don and Iyad Khalaili, who returned from loan, on the wings. Yarin Levi, who returned after two seasons on loan at Beitar, is positioned in the midfield alongside Eitan Azoulay. Tsunami and Bruninho are on the bench, while fresh signings Nigel Lonwijk and Andrej Novakovich are not yet in the squad. Jelle Bataille, Manuel Benson, and Pedrao are absent due to injuries, with Goni Naor, who is not in the plans and does not train with the team, taking the latter's place in the lineup.
On the other side, Hapoel Haifa presents one new foreign player: 21-year-old Cheick Keita from Mali, who starts in the midfield alongside Naor Sabag and Iyad Gonen. In Silvas' lineup, there are three more players who joined in the summer: right-back Noam Cohen, left-back Ariel Mendy, and winger Wahib Habiballah, who joins Liran Rotman and Alon Turgeman in the attacking line.
Match progress
The match has not yet started.
Team lineups
Referee: Gal Leibovich
Stadium: Sammy Ofer (Haifa)
Maccabi Haifa
Coach: Barak Bakhar
Formation: 4:3:3
55 O. Glazer, 2 Z. Zasno, 5 G. Naor, 35 N. Steifman, 3 S. Goldberg, 19 E. Azoulay, 77 Y. Mordechai, 7 Y. Levi, 45 C. Don, 38 A. Grimberg, 32 I. Khalaili.
Hapoel Haifa
Coach: Haim Silvas
Formation: 4:3:3
1 Y. Jerfi, 2 N. Cohen, 5 A. Kricak, 13 D. Jufaric, 77 A. Mendy, 15 I. Gonen, 55 N. Sabag, 8 C. Keita, 14 W. Habiballah, 17 A. Turgeman, 7 L. Rotman.
