The 30-year-old Maccabi captain whose side walked away with compliments but no rewards after suffering a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa said after the match: “First of all, we need to score goals,” Peretz said. “Especially since we had chances to take the lead. Those are situations that change the game. On the other side, they make us pay even from half a chance, while when we reach opportunities it’s close but not enough. We’ll need to know how to punish in the next games, and hopefully that will move us forward.”
Maccabi’s captain reached two good chances to score but couldn’t beat Martínez: “The first chance was great, it hit my heel. The second one, in my opinion, the shot was good enough, but the goalkeeper saved it. Two good chances where we could have got us back in the game. Those are critical moments that change the match, the momentum, and our dominance. We will learn from this, and hopefully we’ll be able to make better use of our chances. We’ll improve and progress.”
On the two goals Maccabi conceded on both sides of the interval: “We showed focus in the first half and also in the second. Conceding a goal before halftime is critical. I don’t think it was due to a lack of concentration, it was an unusual goal, and players at this level deserve credit for that. We can learn from it.”
On improving the record of the single point Maccabi has Peretz said: “We keep coming prepared and focused. We need to keep playing great defensive games like we’ve been doing. I think what will help us move forward is scoring goals, that will put us in a completely different place.”