Israeli duo through in Europa League
Beitar Jerusalem and Maccabi Tel Aviv both record 3-0 wins in first qualifying round, second legs.
Andrew Sherwood is the Jewish News Sport and Community Editor
Beitar Jerusalem and Maccabi Tel Aviv both eased themselves into the second qualifying round of next season’s Europa League competition with convincing wins on Thursday evening.
Maccabi Tel Aviv came away from Albania with a 3-0 win, to complete an overall 5-0 aggregate win over Tirana.
Travelling to the Selman Stermazi stadium with a 2-0 lead from the first leg, the host’s hopes of overturning the tie weren’t helped when they saw Junior Sentamu sent off just before break.
They all but wrapped up the match five minutes into the second half through Aaron Schoenfeld’s strike, before Barak Itzhaki capitalised on a defensive errot to double their lead, before Avraham Rikan put the icing on the Tel Aviv cake six minutes later. They next face Icelandic side KR Reykjavík, once again playing the first leg at home.
Elsewhere, Beitar Jerusalem also recorded a 3-0 away win, to secure a 7-3 aggregate win over Hungarian side Vasas. Taking a 4-3 lead into the match at the Ferenc Szusza Stadion in Budapest, Etey Shechter missed an early penalty, but Hen Ezra fired them into a tenth minute lead. He claimed his second of the match on the hour mark, before Gaetan Varenne tapped home, after being set up by fellow substitute Yossi Benayoun. They next face Bulgarian side Botev Plovdiv, with the first leg, also away from home.
Bnei Yehuda Tel-Aviv enter the competition at the second qualifying stage, and take on Slovakian side Trenčín, the first leg being away from home. The two-legged ties will be played on 13 and 20 July.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
