Takianos: “We refused to lose the lead”

Fotis Takianos emphasized that the PAOK players gave their heart in the second half against Galatasaray and now they are waiting for Tofas Bursa to qualify for the round of 16, he focused on their concentration, but also on the quality of the Turks, on his correct decisions last five minutes, he believes that the difference in the budgets of the four teams in the group makes the journey here longer, he asked for passion and then, he believes that they achieved their initial goals in the Cup and Europe and he focused on the injury problems of Alston and Harrison.

Analytically: “The key to tonight’s game was that we refused to lose what we wanted in the game. It is something we have shown in other matches as well. We gave our hearts in the second half and now we have the home advantage games against Tofas. My players deserve a lot of congratulations.

We knew we had to have 100% concentration and effort against a quality team that had recent additions. We didn’t start the match well, Gemboa created problems for us, the quality of the rest of his teammates also played a role. We didn’t give up and went into the last five minutes, where we made the right decisions, making good defenses. We thank our fans, who supported the team for 40′. Their help was great, especially at the end. There is joy and satisfaction, but we have the championship game with Karditsa ahead of us, so we will be back on the field from tomorrow.”

As for his thoughts when he heard the group and the respective ones now in view of play-in, he said: “With our first victory in the BCL, we created a process that both the victory in Galata and the difference gave us the right, if we were consistent, to be able to think about our entry into the play-ins. We lag behind our rivals in terms of budget and ‘deep’ rotation to a large extent. What PAOK has achieved is an inspiring course.

We managed to show a fighting face, regardless of the opponent. We want this worthy person, the same self-sacrifice, the passion for victory, the passion for the process, our victories, our marches fuel the PAOK organization. PAOK, which is in the process of consolidation, ‘feeds’ on victories”.

As for the first goals that have been achieved, he said: “My philosophy is that, especially the coaches, they must walk on the golden line. There should be no exaggeration in success, but neither too much sadness in defeat. If we look at what is happening around us, at the end of the day we should not be so sad. We must, however, be okay with ourselves that we give 100%.

The team has secured the Final 8 of the Cup and home advantage in the play-ins. We derive satisfaction from the world. With back-to-back matches, we can’t stay more than one day on something. If you stay longer, punishment awaits you in the next step. We do not want to be victims of such a situation. At the moment we have achieved the first goals. The next goal is the Karditsa game, not Tofa.”

On whether the team became wiser from tonight’s game, he replied: “After every game we become wiser, regardless of the result. From today, we can draw confidence. We played against a very high level team. With a first thought, for 40′ it is not the one who has the much bigger budget or the ‘deepest’ roster who wins, but also the one who shows soul, self-sacrifice and teamwork. This is the beauty of the sport.

We have too many injuries. Alston sat out one practice before the game due to a virus. Harrison is coming off an injury that kept him out for ten days. We have too many misfortunes, every day something presents itself to us. If we calm down, work and train, I think things will come to a better balance.”