Beitar Jerusalem blanked Bnei Sakhnin 3-0 as the advanced to the Israel State Cup semifinal where they will face Maccabi Bnei Reineh for the right to take home the coveted trophy for the 2024-25 season. After a goalless first half that saw Sakhnin reduced to ten men after Abdallah Khalial was sent off, Yarden Shua found Omer Atzily in the box as the winger slotted home the opening goal in the 54th minute while the former doubled the advantage off an Adi Yona assist. Mayron George wrapped up the victory in second half injury time to polish off the 3-0 win and send the yellow-and-black to the final four of the competition. The semifinal against Bnei Reineh will take place this coming Thursday night at Bloomfield Stadium while the Hapoel Tel Aviv and Hapoel Beer Sheva semifinal is slated for April 22nd at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem.

“It’s always good to decide a game on the field of play,” Beitar Jerusalem Head Coach Barak Itzhaki began. “We knew it was a game with a lot of stories around it ad there was a lot of pressure. I tried to get the players grounded and understand that we want to advance to the semi-finals on the pitch. Despite a bad first half where we didn’t play smart, we did things better in the second half and one could even say that we played perfectly with three goals”

“It really stinks,” Sakhnin coach Menachem Koretzky said. “I felt like we came prepared, we started exceptionally well and we undermined Beitar. They had no solutions until the red card, it was too easy and too early, instead of a celebration of football, one decision in the 20th minute came to ruin an entire game and an entire team. This was the first foul we committed in the game and to get a red card for that?”

In other news, Moshe “Shino” Zuares, the chairman of the Israel Football Association was elected to serve on the UEFA Executive Committee at the 49th Congress that was held Belgrade.

Zuares was very pleased to have been elected as a member of the committee due to the current security situation in Israel, “It seemed hopeless at first due to the current situation, but I believed all along that for the sake of Israeli football, the State of Israel and the Football Association it was necessary to make every effort to be elated to a position that would greatly assist us.”

“I am the Chairman of the Israel Football Association, a proud citizen of the State of Israel and this is my calling card. Without hiding, without apologizing. Prouder than ever. UEFA has been with us all the way since October 7, protecting us and supporting us in every competition and its leaders, led by President Aleksander Čeferin, deserve every compliment. I pledge to continue working at all times for our football and there is no doubt that being a member of the UEFA Executive Committee will assist us.”