Maccabi Haifa scored four unanswered goals to defeat Hapoel Jerusalem 4-1, with four different players finding the net to keep the Greens within a point of Israeli Premier League leaders Maccabi Tel Aviv. Andrew Idoko gave the Reds a deserved first-half lead, but goals from Andrija Novakovich and Pedro Brazao turned the match around before the break. Kenji Gorre added a third in the second half and substitute Guy Melamed completed the scoring to seal the victory.

Haifa Head Coach Barak Bachar spoke about the win, “I’m happy that we were able to come back from a one goal deficit and pick up the victory. We do have a new team and it will take time to really get going but we are playing very happy football right now. Andrija Novakovich had a wonderful game and really is a player that brings the rest of the team together while the other new players have really started to come together nicely.”

Jerusalem Head Coach Lior Zada looked back at the loss, “I don’t think we played well but we did lead 1-0 in the first half. But we conceded at critical moments and gave up goals that we shouldn’t have. I hoped we would be able to press them a but more but all in all this wasn’t a good game.”

Pedro Brazao talked about the victory, “I’m very happy with the win. It’s very important for the team and I’m delighted with the result. We started the game well and at halftime, the coach told us that the game wasn’t over yet. We wanted to finish it strong. I love the fans and Maccabi Haifa is the best team in Israel. The fans traveled a long way to get here and I wanted to give everything on the pitch for them.”

Andrew Idoko who scored Jerusalem’s lone goal also reflected on the game, “I think at first we scored and tried to control the game, but the lead threw us off balance. We just lost focus. It was tough playing Maccabi Haifa and we found ourselves defending for so many minutes. As a team we need to help each more where the offense needs to defend and the define needs to help the attack more.”

Hapoel Jerusalem came out aggressively, with Edward Chilufya forcing Omri Glazer into an early save with a powerful strike. Nadim Warsana also came close but sent his effort just wide. At the other end, Bruninho and Gorre each tested Jerusalem goalkeeper Nadav Zamir, who was equal to both attempts.

Jerusalem broke the deadlock in the 26th minute when Idoko capitalized on a cross from Christ Tiéhi inside the box and slotted the ball home to make it 1-0. The Greens responded by increasing the pressure and found their equalizer in the 40th minute. Bruninho delivered a perfectly weighted ball to Novakovich, who headed it past Zamir to level the score at 1-1.

Haifa completed the turnaround before halftime. Novakovich initiated the move with a pass to Bruninho, who found Brazao. The midfielder weaved past a defender and rounded the goalkeeper before calmly finishing into the open net to give the Greens a 2-1 lead heading into the break.

Gorre nearly extended Haifa’s advantage early in the second half, but his powerful effort struck the woodwork. His next attempt was gathered by Zamir, keeping Jerusalem within reach. The Reds made several substitutions in search of a response, and Israel Dappa came close to pulling one back, only to see his effort from the right side hit the outside of the net.

Instead, Haifa struck again in the 67th minute. Novakovich picked out Gorre with an excellent pass, and the winger finished clinically to make it 3-1. Novakovich continued to threaten, narrowly missing another opportunity before setting up Brazao, whose attempt was denied at the last moment.

The Greens added a fourth in the 77th minute, just one minute after Melamed came off the bench. The veteran striker made an immediate impact, tapping the ball past Zamir to put the result beyond doubt at 4-1.

Jerusalem continued to search for a consolation goal, but Zamir was forced into another save when Eyad Khalaili threatened from close range. Haifa held firm through the closing stages to secure a convincing victory, maintain their strong title challenge, and remain just one point behind league leaders Maccabi Tel Aviv.