Maccabi Haifa: Things to Know About Tottenham's Europa League Opponents

Tottenham Hotspur have been hobbling through the Europa League qualifiers, and probably just want to get them over and done with. We can't imagine two-time Champions League winning coach Jose Mourinho has been counting down the days until he faces Maccabi Haifa in a Europa League qualifier in an empty stadium.

Nonetheless, just because they're not the most glamorous opponents, doesn't mean Maccabi Haifa don't have some interesting stories to tell. Extraordinary seasons, recognisable faces, a huge fanbase - they're worth reading about.

Here are a few things to know about the Israeli side.

1. The Invincibles

Alon Mizrahi was the league's top scorer with 28 / Mark Thompson/Getty Images

Step aside, Arsene and Thierry, the Invincibles are coming through.

In the 1993/94 season, Maccabi Haifa went the entire league season without losing a game; winning 28 and drawing 11. No side in the history of football has played a 39-game season without defeat.

On top of this, they set the record for most points in a Liga Leumit season with 95.

Not too shabby.

2. Premier League Connection

Yakubu playing for Maccabi Haifa / NICHOLAS KAMM/Getty Images

Maccabi Haifa have employed a number of personnel who may be familiar to English readers.

For example, former Chelsea boss Avram Grant enjoyed a two-year spell at the Israeli club at the start of the century, and short-term Fulham manager Rene Meulensteen had a spell there after leaving the Whites.

As for players, Israeli stars Eyal Berkovic and Yossi Benayoun both had significant stints at the Greens, as well as Premier League cult hero Yakubu.

3. Manchester United Upset

Maccabi shocked Man Utd with a 3-0 win / NICHOLAS KAMM/Getty Images

Maccabi Haifa managed to make it to the Champions League group stages in 2002, becoming the first Israeli team to do so in the process.

When they were drawn against Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United, they could hardly have had high hopes. However, the underdogs managed to pull off a shock 3-0 thrashing in their second meeting.

It was a somewhat weakened Man Utd side, but still contained the likes of Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Yaniv Katan and Raimondas Zutautas both netted screamers to put the hosts 2-0 up, before the Yak converted a penalty to complete an astonishing result.

4. Biggest Team in Israel

Maccabi Haifa have the most fans of all Israeli clubs / JACK GUEZ/Getty Images

According to surveys, Maccabi Haifa are the most supported club in Israel, with approximately a quarter of Israeli football fans following the Greens.

There are many Maccabi Haifa supporters groups - most notably the Green Apes and Inferno Verde. The supporters groups are known to have good relationships with fans of AZ Alkmaar and Werder Bremen.

There is also an argument to be made that they are the most successful Israeli side of all time. While Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv have both won more trophies, Maccabi Haifa have the highest average points per season with 63.25 - just 0.15 ahead of Maccabi Tel Aviv.

5. The Stadium

Maccabi Haifa played here for many years / EuroFootball/Getty Images

From 1955 to 2014, Maccabi Haifa played at the Kiryat Eliezer Stadium. The ground was built for them as a gift from the Italian Labour Union, and had a capacity of 14,000.

The Kiryat Eliezer did not meet UEFA standards, meaning that Maccabi Haifa often had to play their European fixtures elsewhere. For example, the 3-0 win over Manchester United was played in Nicosia.

This eventually led to the club moving to a UEFA-approved ground. Maccabi Haifa moved into the Sammy Ofer Stadium in 2014, which holds over double what the Kiryat Eliezer did. The Sammy Ofer Stadium is also used for some Israel national team home games.