Sayed Abu Farhi spent Sunday afternoon doing two jobs for Maccabi Tel Aviv: scoring goals, and then, for the closing quarter-hour, stopping them. By full time he had done both well enough to help see off Hapoel Jerusalem 5-2 in the Ligat Ha'al's opening round, and to leave with a line for the ages on his way out the door.
Hapoel stunned the home crowd inside 37 seconds when Vitaliy Dmyshkan poked in an early opener at the Rehovot stadium hosting Maccabi's game. The champions barely blinked. Roy Revivo levelled in the 24th minute, and from there the game belonged to Dor Peretz.
Peretz converted a penalty just before the break, then added two more in the second half for the first hat-trick of his senior career — Maccabi's captain-in-waiting turning a nervy afternoon into a rout. Abu Farhi got in on the act himself in the 68th minute, stabbing home a fifth goal for the hosts.
Then came the twist. In the 77th minute goalkeeper Ofek Malika was shown a straight red card for a foul just outside his own box. Maccabi had already used all three substitutes, so instead of dropping to ten men in goal, head coach Kenny Miller sent his young striker back to pull on the gloves.
Abu Farhi could not keep a clean sheet in the role — Ohad Almagor beat him from a stoppage-time free-kick to make it 5-2 — but the result was long since settled, and Maccabi's unbeaten run across all competitions stretched to 11 games, according to ONE's report.
The improvisation carried extra weight. Abu Farhi, 20, is in the closing stages of a move to Colorado Rapids of MLS reported at roughly $6 million, with add-ons that could push the deal towards $7 million and a resale clause for Maccabi, according to Walla! Sport, Ynet and Sport5. The transfer is awaiting final MLS clearance, expected within days, after which Abu Farhi is due to fly to the United States to sign.
That left Sunday's win looking very much like his farewell appearance in yellow, and reporters wanted to know what it meant to finish the game as an emergency goalkeeper rather than the marksman Maccabi are about to sell for a club-record fee.
Abu Farhi, speaking to ONE after the match, framed it as a personal moment rather than a stunt. Both his father and his uncles had played in goal themselves, he said, and getting the chance — however briefly and however unplanned — meant something to him beyond the result.
Asked about rivals being installed as favourites to challenge Maccabi for the title this season, he did not bite. "They can say whatever they want, we'll see at the end of the season," Abu Farhi told ONE.
He was also careful, with his move abroad all but confirmed, to insist his commitment to Maccabi Tel Aviv had not wavered — telling the outlet the club would always hold a special place for him, whatever colours he is wearing when the season finishes.
