Bnei Yehuda in driver's seat for Shamrock rematch

After managing a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Europa League second qualifying round against the Shamrock Rovers in Ireland, Bnei Yehuda finds itself in good position to advance to the next round as it returns for leg two at Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa.

Dror Kashtan's team, which needs a minimum of a scoreless draw to gain a berth to the next round and face Italian powerhouse Juventus, conducted its final practice yesterday to prepare for the match.

During his press conference yesterday, Kashtan did not appear to take his Irish adversary too lightly.

"Shamrock is a team on par with a Premier League club," the former Israel national coach said. "This is a team that is in first place in its league in Ireland after 21 games. It plays a typical English style of soccer, one that features a lot of long passes to its forwards as well as aggressive play. They are a tall bunch who know how to take advantage of static situations."

"Everybody knows the English style of play, and that is their style as well," Kashtan said. "It's not the most modern way of playing, but they are very disciplined and aggressive. This is what we have to deal with."

Shamrock, which is right in the thick of its season in Ireland, seemed to have an advantage over the rusty Bnei Yehuda squad, which is only beginning to find chemistry, during the first leg.

"In the first game, we played against a team that was right in the middle of their season," Kashtan said. "We were back from our break and are in the midst of preparations but if we want to advance to the next stages we will have to cope with this."

Medunjanin expected on left side vs. Mogren

Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder Haris Medunjanin will be slotted on the left wing for tonight's second leg of the Europa League second qualifying round against Mogren in Montenegro.

In yesterday's final practice before the match, manager Avi Nimni and coach Yossi Mizrahi were pleased with the former Valladolid, Spain, star's performance on the left side.