The brawl at the end of the derby clouded Maccabi Haifa’s 0-2 win over Hapoel. San Menachem, who scored the first goal, waved his hands in front of Hapoel Haifa’s bench and shouted: “Now go home,” but he also did not expect the Hapoel Haifa players to run to him in a threatening manner and start a fight.
The green side of the Carmel claim that in the previous derby there was provocation by the Hapoel Haifa players, but then no quarrel developed due to it. The Maccabi Haifa players claimed that they reacted in this way following the events of the previous derby, in which they were cursed and, according to them, also spat.
Haziza posted an Instagram post in which he wrote: “Measure for measure, say everything but I remember what happened the last time.” It is appreciated that these words are directed at the words of Gal Erel, who sharply criticized the conduct of the Maccabi Haifa staff and its players.
A source in Maccabi Haifa responded to the incident: “This is an incident in which players and Hapoel Haifa players violently attacked our players only because of a celebration, even if it was excessive in their perception, it is still severe violence by Hapoel Haifa personnel.”
Erel and Hapoel Haifa claimed that the general manager of Maccabi Haifa, Assaf Ben Dov, attacked, but this made it clear that he arrived with the aim of calming the matter and was eventually knocked down on the lawn and attacked.
The brawl also continued beyond the lawn until the descent to the locker room. According to the evidence, the violence in the locker room area was no less than on the lawn. A source in Maccabi Haifa: “Hapoel Haifa did everything to sabotage and harm us with every possible tool. Unfortunately, we fell into this trap.”
Maccabi Haifa is waiting for Liran Liani’s referee’s report. The club members have gathered evidence and are expected to use the television footage and security cameras, when according to them it was Hapoel Haifa who started the brawl.
In addition, there is concern in Maccabi Haifa about the prosecution of players and long-term expulsions that may lead to damage to the Greens’ championship struggles. The club condemned the case and, as stated, are awaiting the judge’s report and the collection of all the photographs in order to make a decision regarding those involved in the brawl.
