Hapoel Tel Aviv hopes to continue to escape the red line, when it hosts Bnei Sakhnin tomorrow (Saturday), for a head-to-head game against one of its direct rivals against relegation. Along with the professional preparations, the club is preparing for the entry of 1,500 fans, for the first time in a year, and along with the excitement at the return of the crowd, Khodorov is also disappointed with the number of spectators approved.
“1,500 fans in a stadium of 30,000, it will probably look sad but at least we will feel and hear our fans up close again,” the team said. Each fan who purchased a ticket was given an arrival time, with a 15-minute interval between the fans, and Hapoel hopes that the fans will listen to the instructions. “We are actually the initial pilot for the return of the audience. We believe that the fans also understand the situation and prepare themselves that they will need patience,” the source said.
The club is also preparing for the Ultras organization to arrive at the stadium and protest the crowd’s outline, with it estimated that several hundred will arrive. Meanwhile, about 30 fans came to the concluding training session and encouraged the players ahead of the game on Saturday. A few of them, by the way, insulted the actors.
Professionally, Nir Klinger will be missing Eddie Gottlieb, who is injured in the groin, Ben Bitton, who dislocated his shoulder and will undergo an MRI next week, and Shlomi Azulai, who sprained his ankle. Ofek Bitton, who is also suffering from an ankle injury, is being trained by Hapoel Tel Aviv.
In any case, the intriguing question is who will replace Bitton in the right-back position: Iyad Abu Abid may be sidelined and in that case Raz Shlomo will play in the center of defense along with Sianda Kolo; Another option is to place Niv Sardel in the right defensive position. Raz Stein is expected to receive the credit in place of Azoulay Bhod and Dan Einbinder, Omri Altman, Lidor Cohen and Osher Davida will continue in the 11th.
