After four matches, it’s hard not to be impressed by Maccabi Tel Aviv’s play so far this season having gone 4/4 with wins against Israeli league heavyweights in Maccabi Haifa, Hapoel Beer Sheva and Hapoel Tel Aviv in a 4-1 Derby win at Bloomfield Stadium. Kenny Miller has his squad running on all cylinders as the yellow-and-blue seem to be head-and-shoulders above all of the other “big” teams in the league.

While Maccabi did win by a trio of goals, it took them quite a while to finally polish off Hapoel as it had been 2-1 for more than a half of play until two late goals finally sealed the deal. Stav Turiel was sent off with a second yellow, as the referee once again had too much influence in a game that they shouldn’t have, just as they did last week in Beer Sheva, but it is what it is as the Reds played the yellow-and-blue tough until they finally conceded.

Unlike Ran Kozuk who had choice words for the officiating, Elyaniv Barda didn’t want to criticize the refs and instead said that both his yellows could have been avoided.

However, back to Maccabi who are top of the table with a cool dozen points will have a chance to head into the international break with five wins when they visit Maccabi Netanya on Saturday night after the diamond city squad lost a brutal 2-0 game to newly promoted Hapoel Ramat Gan in a game that they never quite looked right in.

But what has really helped Miller’s squad has been the addition of Gaby Kanichowsky who has changed the complexion of Maccabi’s game play which was so evident in his first two games back in the Holy Land after a season abroad in Hungary at Ferencvaros. Add in another newcomer in top flight veteran James Tavernier who has also looked good since his arrival and what you’ve got is a well-oiled machine.

Miller had plenty to say about his new midfielder in Kanichowsky and how he sees #16 fitting into the team with such ease, “It’s an incredible season. Gaby’s came in and he’s obviously really familiar with the club. He’s played with a lot of these players as well before he left and he’s fitted seamlessly into that midfield and what it does is it gives us a really, really good balance within the three players that we’ve got [in the midfield].”

As for Tavernier, it’s rare to have such a talent and an all-time star coming to Israel, but here he is thanks to his former teammate and current Maccabi bench boss, Kenny Miller as he explained the reason he decided to sign with State Cup holders while also sharing warm words about his new home.

Such players coming to Israel should never, ever be taken for granted as it is rare in a good and quiet season that the likes of a Tavernier would be playing here and that was something that was made crystal clear to the defensive back by the warmth he has received by the fans, club and those around the former Rangers star.

Having players like Kanichowsky and Tavernier also helps get more out of the rest of the squad, whether it’s by taking advantage of the former’s incredible vision and passing ability of the latter’s leadership skills and quality that such a player can bring. That also allows Miller to heap praise on other players including Osher Davida who scored Maccabi’s second goal and continues to create havoc on the right flank and havoc in front of the Hapoel Tel Aviv fans with an Eran Zahavi goal celebration.

“As a staff, we know the qualities that Osher has. They kept telling me that two seasons ago he had a wonderful season and he had good numbers and goals and assists and we want him to get back to that level. I think our two wingers are right at the top of their game at the moment. They’re always contributing goal chances, assists and it was another really, really positive performance from both our wingers, as it was for everybody. The team performances over the last few weeks have been excellent. But in terms of Osher, he’s in a really good place.”

“We need to keep pushing him,” Miller continued. “We need to keep working with him to make sure he keeps that level up. He said to me about two seasons ago that he was better than he is at the moment, then he’s a very, very good player. So we’ve got him in a good place, as we have the whole group and it’s about keeping up. It’s about keep pushing, enjoy it, understand why we’re winning and we then move on to the next game. We’ll enjoy this, we’ll move on as it’s about going and making sure it’s five out of five.”

Noam Ben Harush who shifted over from right back to left back with the arrival of Tavernier and the departure of Roy Revivo has been a revelation as well after having been a part of both Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Haifa as the 21-year old was also part of the youth national team program. He’s been playing so well that there is talk that Israel National Team Head Coach Ran Ben Shimon is planning to call him up for the four Nations League games that will be played at the end of September and early October.

“Every game he’s played this season, whether it be from the start or coming on, he’s been top,” Miller said of Ben Harush. “So, he’s taken that slot at the moment and this is what you want. As a coach, you want players to take the jersey, keep the jersey by performing and doing the work, again, not just in games.”

“We see the performances that the players are putting in, but that’s down to the work that we put in every single day and Noam, at the moment, he’s taking that opportunity to play left-back. It’s not his position, but he’s been really, really good in that for the last two or three games. The jersey at the moment is his and it’s up to someone else to show they’re better.”

Of course, getting up to play a big game especially a derby should be easy as even Miller wanted to get out onto the pitch and turn back father time, “It’s a fantastic fixture, it really is. The one thing I would say about our fans at home and away, to be honest, but particularly at home is when you’ve got 30,000 there supporting you, they create an incredible atmosphere for the team and for the players to go in. What player wouldn’t want to play in front of that type of atmosphere and environment tonight? It’s an incredible place to be. I would much rather be on the field where you can actually impact it!”

“As a coach, it’s a bit different. You still enjoy it and it’s an amazing atmosphere to be part of, but there’s a lot of nerves and things that are going through because you can control so much. It’s an incredible place to play this derby in front of our own fans. I always say it, it’s never taken for granted the support that they bring from the first whistle to the last and it was nice to send them home happy.”

Next up is Netanya and Miller wants to get that fifth win and go into the break with a big smile on his face. Sure, there is still plenty to do, but to get off to such an incredible start against the teams that they have played and won is the name of the game and now it’s on to the next one in what is a marathon; Miller is well aware that the championship isn’t won after just a handful of games.

“It’s a long, long way to go. We’re really, really happy with the start and I said it before, it looked a tough start on paper. But we’ve came through the first four games with maximum points and again, for me, you move on to the next game now. That’s it. All eyes go on Saturday. It’s as simple as that.”