The World Cup will not be given to the National team

Everyone has the right to be wrong. But not the National team in the World Cup. As her path in the event has been shaped, the “official favorite” has knockout games only. And – as paradoxical as it sounds –the “easiest” match in Manila will be the one against the USA. Somehow, the #WinForHellas hashtag established by FIBA ​​(and there is a corresponding one for every team in the competition) could also be paraphrased as… #WinOrGoHome! In general, whoever loses… goes home and not to the knockouts, but essentially from the group matches.

Christos Robolis writes from Manila

The World Cup is on “dishonorable” organization. It’s not like Eurobasket, which puts you with the… soft in the hard. Last year in Milan, the National Team had the luxury of one, two or three defeats in the group stage games without them being catastrophic. France and Poland, for example, reached the top four and the final after losing twice in the group stage.

eh the world cup is not so “gallon” with the groups that go astray. On the contrary! And Greece “experienced” it in their skin in 2019, when with a full composition in China they saw the defeat by Brazil mortgage and ultimately destroy their entire course in the continuation of the tournament. In the 2023 event, things are even stricter for the National team.

Co-existing with the number one favorite for the gold medal in the third group, the USA, makes barring any other defeat in the group. Since the top two of the group advance to the second group stage and since Team USA is not given away to anyone, as is expected to happen, the matches between Greece, Jordan and New Zealand have the character of survival battles. It is no exaggeration to say that in inevitable scenario of defeat by Jordan in the premiere, on Saturday morning (11:40), qualifying will become mission impossible for the Greek team. Which – in this case – will be begging New Zealand to beat the Asians on Monday so that with their own victory over the Tall Blacks and by a good margin on Wednesday, they can prevail in the three-way tie. Accordingly, the Greek team may start at right-back on Saturday, but in any case – especially if New Zealand beat Jordan on Monday – the match against the Tall Blacks on Wednesday will amount to qualifying final.

That’s why the intermediate match, the one on Monday (15:40) with Team USA is the easiest for Greece. Even if he loses by 30! Because unlike the other two games, a loss – no matter how heavy – won’t cost her anything, unlike the other two games where even one loss will shatter dreams of breakthrough runs and doom the ‘official favorite’ in the… compulsive works of ranking matches for positions 17-32, which no player would wish on their enemy. So, aside from two teams that will play to overcome and the chances of a (for them) historic qualification, Jordan and New Zealand, the National team will have manage AND the pressure of “must”. A burden she has to prove she can carry on her back, without players of the class or experience of a Giannis Antetokounmpo, a Slukas or a Kalathis to guide her away from trouble.

As long as the national team avoids the “mines” of Jordanians and New Zealanders, it will not be able to breathe with relief, since the hardest is yet to come. In fact, in addition to the increasing level of competition, the… unforgivable for any loss is also maintained. Provided that Lithuania and Montenegroin whatever order this happens, prove their superiority in theory and on the pitch against Mexico and Egypt in the fourth group, Greece has only one path, an extremely difficult one, to the quarter-finals: the 2/2 against the teams of Valanciunas and Vucevicssince even one victory will not be enough to accompany the USA (which will logically arrive with 5/5) to the quarterfinals.

We said, it is the World Cup is tough. And he does not forgive mistakes and missteps, nor does he “care” if the Greek team goes down with resounding absences, six different faces in relation to Eurobasket or several rookies. The consolation is that this national team is under no illusions. She doesn’t look down on opponents who in other times would be considered easy prey (even though she’s stepped on her in the past), she knows exactly who she is and how many passes she needs to make, and she won’t be caught sleeping or in a cocky mood. And this is the first and decisive step to avoid unpleasant surprises initially, with the aim of pleasantly surprising us in the next stages of the World Cup.