Dabrauskas: “That’s why I left OFI”

The reasons why the Valdas Dabrauskas was driven out OFI he explained himself in an interview he gave to the media of his country. The Lithuanian coach mentioned that it is a complex situation that they have finally found themselves in after a run of games without a win.

“It’s complex. With OFI we were walking a fine line. All four draws in that span have been wins. At the beginning of the year the ball went in, later it didn’t. Then you don’t win the first, second, third game and it becomes harder to win the fourth. In the fifth it is now improbable. Everything changes from there. If you work in Lithuania and you have 10 people around you, 100 active fans then there is a crowd. You go downtown after a win and they bring you drinks, food, you don’t have to pay. When you lose, they don’t let you in” he said characteristically.

The statements of the Lithuanian technician:



“OFI had a very good year where they finished in seventh place. We were last, we were relegated from the league and finally to finish seventh was a positive. After a year like this, you now ask: What is the next goal? Ok, the next goal is to get into the play offs. But what do we do? Are we improving this or that? I don’t want to put all the groups under the same banner, because each of them has a different history, but there is a trend that prevails in general. When things are going well, they don’t want to do anything, they don’t want anything to change. We were winning, so everything was good. Before that, the previous coach did something wrong, another one came, we got better, got along and got better. Let’s leave this year, let’s leave everything as it was and next season will be great. Usually it turns out the other way around. The “hunger” disappears, the routine continues, one or the other doesn’t work. You have to react, usually the reaction is delayed, then they tell you that maybe you are doing something wrong here, maybe you are not taking enough. And comes the desire for a change. I don’t know if these changes give the result you want. I like a quote by Abraham Lincoln that says if you have five hours to cut down a tree, spend four hours sharpening the axe. And within this last hour your weapon will be ready. And here the other side is proven – we talk about how good we are, how we’re going to do, the season starts, you beat the favorites and then the play offs aren’t enough for you. Then you start thinking about Europe, that maybe you should try to become a champion. But the reality is different. You may play well in one game or another but the course will show you where you deserve to reach. Expectations are a very important thing, one of the things you have to learn to manage better.”



For his dismissal from OFI:



“When you get hired, it’s the same people who fire you. It may sound like a cliché, but firing a coach is the most normal thing in this job. There are no coaches who haven’t been fired.”



For the reason that caused his release from the Cretan team:



“You raise your expectations, you win, you’re in 3rd or 4th place after five games and then you don’t win for six games in a row. The reasons; It is complex. With OFI we were walking a fine line. All four draws in that span have been wins. At the beginning of the year the ball went in, later it didn’t. Then you don’t win the first, second, third game and it becomes harder to win the fourth. In the fifth it is now improbable. Everything changes from there. If you work in Lithuania and you have 10 people around you, 100 active fans then there is a crowd. You go downtown after a win and they bring you drinks, food, you don’t have to pay. When you lose, they don’t let you in,” he said characteristically.