Five other top-tier teams advance

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s first game since the departure of coach Shota Arveladze.

Maccabi visits Bnei Lod of the National League, with sports director Jordi Cruyff, or one of Arveladze’s assistants, to guide the team.

Maccabi and Arveladze parted ways on Thursday, bringing his tenure to an end after less than seven months. The Georgian got off to a promising start, leading the yellow-and-blue to the Europa League group stage and picking up 16 of a possible 18 points to start the Premier League season.

But the team lost its way over the past three months, winning just three of 10 league games to fall eight points back of Beersheba and suffering a disappointing exit from continental competition.

“We are going through a difficult year and we expected it,” said Cruyff on Thursday. “We probably didn’t expect the last 6-7 weeks when we lost points against teams that we should have taken points.”

Despite reports to the contrary, Cruyff insisted that he has a strong relationship with owner Mitch Goldhar “My relation with the owner is a good one and a solid one. Things that are happening this season were not unexpected for me and for him,” he explained. “We were planning to go through a process over the summer and maybe we will begin in January. Mitch Goldhar is a man with a winning mentality and character and I have that same character.

“The club has had many good years and now is a difficult time with changes,” he added. “When you get used to winning you forget what losing is. Sometimes losing gives you a reality check.”

Maccabi Haifa, which beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in last season’s cup final, opens its title defense when it hosts Maccabi Petah Tikva in one of two all-Premier League showdown in the round-of-32.

The second all-Premier League showdown will see Beitar Jerusalem welcome Hapoel Kfar Saba on Saturday night.