Maccabi Tel Aviv will look to get back on track Tuesday night when they visit Red Star Belgrade in Serbia for the opening game of a EuroLeague double week. The yellow-and-blue will remain in Serbia for Thursday’s matchup against Paris Basketball, with this contest serving as home-away-from-home game amid the ongoing security situation in Israel.

Head Coach Oded Katash’s squad enters the game with a 2-5 record after suffering a disappointing 93-90 overtime loss to Maccabi Rishon LeZion in Winner League action. Maccabi will now have to quickly put that setback behind them against a physical Red Star side, with the challenge made more difficult by the absence of injured guard Iffe Lundberg, who is expected to miss six to eight weeks with a partial tear of his quadriceps tendon. The club is still searching for a replacement in the backcourt.

Katash acknowledged the frustration following the Rishon defeat but stressed the importance of learning from the loss and maintaining the right mentality as the schedule becomes increasingly demanding.

“The game against Rishon didn’t unfold the way we wanted. It’s not easy, and we don’t want to make excuses, but these things can happen. We have to learn from it and move on because, ultimately, it’s not all that bad,” Katash explained. “The schedule isn’t going to get any easier, especially now with a double week against two teams that are a little different.”

The Maccabi coach also pointed to rebounding and physicality as critical factors over the next two games, noting that both upcoming opponents rank among the EuroLeague’s best in offensive rebounding.

“We’re going to face two teams that lead the EuroLeague in offensive rebounding, which is a key area for us and an opportunity to show aggression, commitment and consistency,” Katash said. “We’re still in the early stages of the season, but we’ve had better games. After the first two EuroLeague games, we had much better stretches, including this past week.”

Despite falling behind by 20 points against Rishon, Maccabi fought its way back to force overtime, while the team also showed positive stretches against Real Madrid. However, Katash emphasized that the squad must bring consistent energy and focus regardless of the circumstances.

“There’s one thing that, in my opinion, is worse than the loss itself: body language and energy,” he added. “It’s not easy to bring 100% energy every two days, but that’s our job. It’s the only way we can ensure that we at least remain positive. It’s still a long season, and we’ll face challenges. It’s not going to get any easier.”

Katash also addressed the speculation surrounding Maccabi’s search for another guard, insisting that the club’s management and ownership remain committed to strengthening the roster.

“I have 100% confidence in management and in Claudio Coldebella, and efforts are being made in this regard,” he said, dismissing suggestions that financial concerns or disagreements among the owners were preventing the club from making a move.

“The owners also have high ambitions. There is a genuine intention to bring in a player. There are no issues and no hidden messages. Everyone is committed, and there are no restrictions. Quite the opposite. We simply need to find the right player.”

Forward Oshae Brissett echoed his coach’s message, stressing that Maccabi must take responsibility for its recent performances and rediscover the intensity that can make it competitive against any opponent.

“We simply have to focus on one game at a time. But I think we need to look at ourselves. Before we get to these games, it’s not about plays or anything like that. We have to understand what kind of team we want to be,” Brissett said. “It’s frustrating that we’re experiencing this now, but we can turn things around because we have a lot of great guys on this team.”

Brissett believes Maccabi has the talent to compete with the EuroLeague’s best, but emphasized that effort and execution must come first.

“Whatever happens, we cannot lose because we didn’t play hard, didn’t do the little things or didn’t make our fans and our team proud. Those things really matter, and they can win us games because we’re talented. We’re one of the most talented teams in the EuroLeague. The message to the guys is simple: We have to go out there and play hard. That’s it.”

Looking ahead to Red Star, Brissett acknowledged the quality of the Serbian side but insisted that Maccabi’s performance will ultimately determine its chances of success.

“They’re a physical, tough and talented team, but it all depends on us. Every game from here on out depends on us. I feel that we can be competitive in every game. We have the roster to do it and the system to do it,” he said. “We’ve shown that we can play good basketball and put together great quarters, so it’s simply up to us. We have to do what we do, go out there and play our game.”

Brissett also admitted that the loss to Rishon could linger mentally, but stressed that the team must quickly turn its attention to the next challenge.

“It doesn’t matter who you lose to or when. Whenever you lose at anything in life, it stays with you. But people always say you’re only as good as your next game, so we simply have to focus on our next game and beat Red Star Belgrade.”

With a difficult double week ahead and little time to dwell on recent results, Maccabi will need to bring greater consistency, match Red Star’s physicality and take care of the details if it hopes to return to the winning column and improve its EuroLeague standing.