Hapoel Tel Aviv Owner Ofer Yannai Blasts Team After Derby Supercup Defeat

Hapoel Tel Aviv's multi-million project suffered a heavy blow on Thursday evening at the start of the basketball season. The derby defeat to Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Supercup did not pass quietly on the red side of the city, and club owner Ofer Yannai made sure to make his feelings known to the players immediately after they left the parquet.

Yannai, who does not hide his lofty ambitions and the huge budget he assembled this season, entered the locker room and gathered his star-studded squad for a sharp conversation. During the meeting, he combined severe criticism of the refereeing union with an immediate demand for a change of attitude from the players.

Yannai's Address to the Players

"You know I hate to lose," Yannai began his remarks to the stunned players. "But I want to tell you how I process losses. A loss is fuel from which you learn how to be better. We lost to Maccabi and Real in series last season, and from every series, we learned something. Real Madrid taught us that you need to build a team with two quality starting fives, and against Maccabi, who beat us with one Israeli, we learned that we need naturalized players."

However, the owner's main anger was directed at the officiating crew, which he claimed clearly disadvantaged the Reds. Yannai mentioned the names of his shining new acquisition stars to illustrate his claims:

• Amir Coffey does not understand what is happening.

• Kadeem Carrington is not getting whistles he used to get when he played for Hapoel Jerusalem.

• Zach LeDay and Vasilije Micic are not receiving respect.

"It's not fair, but unfortunately, that's life. You're against Maccabi, there won't be fair refereeing," he added.

Ultimatum for the Rest of the Season

Despite the harsh claims of bias, Yannai did not cut the players any slack for the mental collapse they experienced on the parquet against the Yellows, ending with a clear ultimatum for the rest of the season:

"What do I expect from you in such a situation? To be bursting with energy—and not to lose focus. If you still lose despite that, there are no complaints. But today you lost your heads and it seemed your spirit was broken. I hope you hate to lose like me—and that you take the suffering from the loss so that next time you look different."