Masai Dego Reflects on Hapoel Ramat Gan's Dramatic Toto Cup Draw and Team Progress

Hapoel Ramat Gan secured a dramatic 2-2 draw against Hapoel Jerusalem on August 5, 2026, with a last-minute equalizer in the 95th minute during the Toto Cup competition. The newly promoted team's coach, Masai Dego, expressed satisfaction with the result, emphasizing the importance of remaining unbeaten to build confidence ahead of the league season. Dego acknowledged the team’s less impressive performance in this match compared to previous games but highlighted the learning opportunities the Toto Cup provides. He also noted the need to strengthen the squad with additional foreign players, including a defender, a striker, and a midfielder, while appreciating the current squad’s efforts despite these gaps.

Goal scorer Amit Tzur celebrated his first goal and the team’s ability to secure a point, expressing optimism about reaching the Toto Cup semifinals and contributing more as a young player. On the opposing side, Hapoel Jerusalem’s coach Lior Zada expressed disappointment over conceding goals at critical moments but recognized positive aspects and areas for improvement, particularly in offensive play and team cohesion. Andrew Idoko, who scored a notable goal for Jerusalem, described the result as bittersweet and stressed the team's ambition and confidence moving forward.

The match underscored both teams’ preparations for the upcoming league season, with Ramat Gan aiming to build on their unbeaten streak and Jerusalem focusing on correcting mistakes identified during the Toto Cup games.