Benayoun Hat Trick Leads Israel to Euro 2012 Win

September 2nd, 2010 | by: Ibracadabra | Comments Off

Chelsea midfielder Yossi Benayoun struck a hat trick as Israel brushed aside Malta, the tiny island nation, in their first Euro 2012 Qualifying Match.

Israel are ranked # 38 in the world in the latest FIFA rankings and looked much stronger throughout than their Group F opponents Malta, ranked # 151.

Benayoun actually put the ball in the net four times but saw one goal ruled out for a handball.

Israel’s attacking players Benayoun, Sahar, and Rafaelov all impressed (especially Rafaelov with his one-on-one dribbling capabilities) while the defense did enough to get the job done but looked far from inspired. The defense will need to improve when the Israelis travel to Tbilisi for their second qualifying match against Georgia this coming Tuesday.

Impressing off the bench as second half substitutes were Gili Vermuth and Gent striker Shlomi Arbeitman – both will be pushing for a starting spot against Georgia after solid second half performances.

Israel’s French manager Luis Fernandez now has a first competitive win under his belt, but no one is fooled by the opposition on this day. It will be the likes of Latvia (#48 in the world), Greece (#12 in the world) and Croatia (#14 in the world) that will cause the Blue and Whites real problems in Group F so 12 points from Malta and Georgia are not only to be expected, but are a must if the Israelis will end up in Poland / Ukraine in 2012.

So far so good for Israel, who won 3-1, just as we predicted (exact score) they would exclusively here on the blog in our Euro 2012 preview. Well done, Yossi.